PLAl]   FOR  ORGANIZATION   OF  SCHOOLS  OF  LINCOLN   GO. 


V, 


Educational  Publication  No.  71        Division  of  School  Organization  No.  1 


A  County- Wide  Plan  for  the  Organization 

of  the  Schools  of  Lincoln  County 

North  Carolina 


Madb  bt 
Geoege  Howaed,  Je.,  Director,  Division  of  School  Organization 
Lawrence  L,  Lohr,  Assistant  Supervisor  of  High  Schools 

1923 


APPROYED  BT 

The  State  Board  for  County- Wide  Planning 


Library  of  the 
University  of  North  Carolina 

Kndowed  by  the  Dialectic  and  Philan- 
thropic Societies 


ri: 


.1  l*J' 


Educational  Publication  No.  71         Dwision  of  School  Organization  ■  No.  1 


A  County- Wide  Plan  for  the  Organization 

of  the  Schools  of  Lincoln  County 

North  Carolina 


Made   by 

Geoege  Howard,  Jr.,  Director,  Division  of  School  Organization 
Lawrence  L.  Lohr,  Assistant  Supervisor  of  High  Schools 

1923 


APPROVED  BY 

The  State  Board  for  County- Wide  Planning 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE 

STATE  SUPERINTENDENT  OF  PUBLIC    INSTRUCTION 
RALEIGH,  N.  C. 


INTRODUCTION 

At  the  invitation  of  the  County  Board  of  Education  of  Lincoln 
County,  Dr.  George  Howard,  Jr.,  of  the  State  Department  of  Educa- 
tion, undertook  to  make  a  preliminary  survey  of  the  educational  con- 
ditions of  that  county  and  to  suggest  to  the  County  Board  of  Education 
a  plan  of  organization  for  all  the  schools  of  the  county.  It  was  his 
purpose  to  collect  only  such  facts  as  would  hear  directly  on  the  plan 
of  organization.  This  report,  therefore,  should  not  he  considered  as 
an  exhaustive  survey. 

The  facts  collected,  however,  are  so  pertinent  to  the  main  purpose  of 
the  survey  and  so  lucidly  stated  and  the  suggested  plan  of  organization 
so  promising,  that  this  report  will  he  of  great  service  not  only  to  the 
County  Board  of  Education  of  Lincoln  County,  hut  will  also  serve  as 
a  guide  to  other  superintendents  and  County  Boards  of  Education  who 
are  planning  a  reorganization  of  their  county  schools.  Every  county 
has  certain  local  situations  that  it  must  meet  in  its  own  way.  Still 
the  main  principles  of  county-wide  organization  will  be  applicable  to 
all  counties.  Eor  this  reason  the  State  Department  of  Education  is 
printing  a  considerable  number  of  these  bulletins  for  the  use  of 
County  Boards  of  Education  and  County  Superintendents  in  all  the 
counties  of  the  State. 

8taie  Swperint evident  Public  Instruction. 


To  the  Board  of  Education  of  Lincoln  County: 

In  the  summer  o£  1923  you  requested  the  State  Superintendent  of 
Public  Instruction  to  have  a  study  of  your  county  made  by  some  mem- 
ber of  the  State  Department  of  Education,  and  have  recommendations 
made  to  you  in  regard  to  the  plan  of  county  organization  for  Lincoln 
County. 

In  accordance  with  this  request,  State  Superintendent  Allen  assigned 
me  to  your  county  for  the  purpose  of  working  out  a  plan  as  stated  above. 
After  a  very  careful  study  of  your  county,  the  suggested  plan  of  organ- 
ization is  herewith  submitted.  It  is  fully  realized  that  the  adoption 
of  the  plan  rests  entirely  with  the  County  Board  of  Education.  The 
State  law  provides  that  each  county  must  make  out  a  county-wide 
plan  of  organization,  and  that  all  changes  in  district  lines  shall  be  made 
in  accordance  with  this  plan. 

In  making  the  study  of  Lincoln  County  it  was  found  that  there  were 
so  few  negro  children  in  the  county  that  it  was  thought  best  to  make 
a  separate  report  to  the  County  Board  of  Education  in  regard  to  that. 
A  sufficient  amount  of  money  has  been  put  in  the  budget  not  only  tor 
maintaining  an  efficient  school  system  for  the  negro  children,  but  also 
for  improving  the  buildings  in  which  they  attend  school.  This  report 
is  in  the  hands  of  the  County  Board  of  Education. 

A  number  of  tables  showing  the  average  daily  attendance  and  enroll- 
ment in  each  school  over  a  period  of  years,  and  other  facts  that  were 
necessary  to  collect  in  order  to  make  out  this  plan,  are  also  in  the 
hands  of  the  County  Board  of  Education.  It  was  deemed  unnecessary 
to  publish  in  detail  these  tables  and  facts,  as  the  essential  material  from 
them  is  given  in  this  study  as  herewith  submitted. 

This  is  not  intended  for  an  intensive  survey  of  the  school  system  of 
Lincoln  County,  and  only  those  facts  and  material  were  gathered  which 
would  lead  to  the  making  out  of  an  intelligent  plan  for  the  reorgani- 
zation of  the  county. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

Geokge  Howard,  Jr., 

Director  of  School  Organization. 
RAiiBiGH,  N.  C,  January  1,  1924. 


CONTENTS 


Chapter  Page 

I.     Lincoln  County,-  Its   Townships,   Roads,   Population,   School 

Census  and  School  Enrollment 7 

Townships    7 

Roads  7 

Population   7 

V,                    School  Population 9 

Average  Daily  Attendance  Statistics  10 

II.     Lincoln  County's  Obligation  to  Its  Boys  and  Gikls  12 

Standard  Elementary  Education  12 

Accredited  High  School 13 

Comfortable,  Sanitary  Buildings  13 

Educational  Support 14 

PART  I 

HoAV  is  Lincoln  County  Meeting  Its  Obligation  of  Providing: 

III.  Standard  Elementary  Education? 15 

Teachers  16 

Equipment 18 

Term 18 

IV.  Standard  High  School  Education?  26 

V.     Comfortable,   Sanitary  Buildings?  - 28 

VI.     Educational  Support  From  All  the  Taxable  Property  in  the 

County? 39 

The  District  Method  39 

Special  Taxing  District 41 

The  County  as  the  Unit 43 

PARTn 

How  can  Lincoln  County  Meet  Its  Obligation  of  Providing: 

VII.    Standard  Elementary  Education?  44 

Location,  Site,  Buildings,  Number  Pupils,  Teachers  and  Trucks 

for  proposed  elementary  schools  47 

VIII.     Standard  High  School  Education?  51 

Location,  Site,  Buildings,  Number  Pupils,  Teachers  and  Trucks 

for  proposed  Intermediate  High  Schools  53 

Location,  Site,  Buildings,  Number  Pupils,  Teachers  and  Trucks 

for  proposed  Senior  High  Schools  53 

IX.     Comfortable,  Sanitary  Buildings? 54 

Types  of  Building 54 

New  Buildings 55 

Service  Equipment  Installed 55 

Cost 55 

Recommendations  for  Building  Program  56 

X.     Educational  Support  From  All  the  Taxable  Property  in  the 

County?   5S 

PART in 

XI.     Important  Recommendations  59 

Transportation 59 

General  Recommendations  60 

Supervision   60 

Assistant  Superintendent  for  Transportation  60 

Sectional  Superintendents    60 

County  Board  of  Education  60 

Board  of  Education  for  Special  Chartered  District  60 

XII.     What  Will  it  Cost  Lincoln  County  to  Meet  Its  Obligation?  61 


LIST  OF  TABLES 

Table  -  Page 

I.      Census    Statistics    for    Each    Townsliip    in    Lincoln    County    for    Each    Census 

Period    1890-1920 8 

II.      School  Census  Statistics  for  the  Townships  of  Lincoln  County,  1915  to  1923.-..  10 

III.  Average  Daily  Attendance  for  the  Townships  of  Lincoln  County,  1915  to  1923  10 

IV.  Lincoln   County   Teachers,    1922-23 16 

V.      Certificates  Held  by  Teachers  in  Lincoln   County,    1922-23   17 

VI.     Lincolnton   Teachers,    1922-23    17 

VIl.     Enrollment  in  the  Schools  of  Lincoln  County  by  Grades   Since  1912-13 19 

VIII.      Enrollment  by  Age  and  Grade 21 

IX.      Per  Cent  of  Total  Number  of  Children   in  Each  Grade  Who  Are  Under  Age, 

Normal  Age,   and  Over  Age  22 

X.     The  Number  and  Per  Cent  of  Total  Number  of  Children  in  Each  Grade  "Who 

Are  Under  Age,  Normal  Age  and  Over  Age  25 

XI.      School  Building  Scores  30 

XII.     Valuation   Per    Pupil   Enrolled   and   Valuation   Per    Teacher   for    Each    of   the 

Local  Tax  Districts  of   Lincoln   County,    1922-23   40 

XIII.     Valuation   Per   Pupil    Enrolled    and   Valuation    Per    Teacher   for   Each    of   the 

Townships  of  Lincoln   County,    1922-23 41 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Figures 

1.  Map  of  Lincoln  County  Opposite  page  7 

2.  Population  Chart  by  Townships  9 

3.  Average  Daily  Attendance  of  Each  Township  in  Lincoln  County  11 

4.  School  Map    of   Lincoln    County,    Giving   Name   of    School,    Number    of   Teachers 

and  Enrollment,    1922-23 Opposite  page  15 

5.  Schools  of  Lincoln  County  With  Two  Mile   Circle  Drawn  Around 

Them Opposite    page  16 

6.  Grade  Progress  of  910  Pupils  Who  Were  in  the  First  Grades  of  Lincoln  County 

in  1912-13   : 20 

7.  Per   Cent  of  Pupils  That  are  Over  Age,   Normal  Age  and  Under  Age   in   Each 

Grade  of  the  Schools  of  Lincoln  County 24 

8.  School  Building    Scores 35 

9.  Valuation  in  Each  Township  for  Each  Pupil  Enrolled,   and  Valuation  in   Each 

Township  for  Each  Teacher 42 

Proposed  Elementary  Centers  for  Lincoln  County Opposite  page  51 

Proposed  High  School  Centers  for  Lincoln  County  Opposite  page  54 

Location  of  Stroup  School 27 

North  Brook  Consolidated  School 27 

Bakers   School  — : 31 

Howards   Creek   Consolidated   School   31 

Union    Consolidated    School   32 

Fairview    School    - - 32 

Beatty's   Ford   School - 33 

Stroup    School 33 

Interior  Signboard   School  37 

Some  Old  School  Desks   —. : 37 

Signboard    School    38 

Toilet  at  Lowesville   School  38 


10. 

11. 

Plate 

I  A. 

B 

II  A. 

B 

III  A. 

B. 

IV  A. 

B. 

VA. 

B 

VIA. 

B 

LINCOLN     COUNTY      NORTH      CAROLINA 


o 


FlGURt 


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A  COUNTY- WIDE  PLAN  FOR  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF 
THE  SCHOOLS  OF  LINCOLN  COUNTY 

CHAPTER  I 

LINCOLN  COUNTY,  ITS  TOWNSHIPS,  ROADS,  POPULATION, 
SCHOOL  CENSUS  AND  SCHOOL  ENROLLMENT 

Lincoln  County,  North  Carolina,  lies  in  what  is  known  as  the  Pied- 
mont section  of  the  State.  It  is  in  nearly  all  respects  a  typical  county 
of  the  Piedmont  section. 

TOWJfSHIPS 

There  are  five  townships  in  Lincoln  County,  each  township  run- 
ning the  full  length,  north  and  south,  of  the  county.  The  western 
township  is  from  Indian  Creek  west  to  the  county  line,  and  is 
known  as  North  Brook.  Howard's  Creek  Township  is  bounded  on 
the  west  by  Indian  Creek  and  on  the  east  by  the  south  fork  of 
the  Catawba  River  to  the  point  where  Howard's  Creek  enters  this 
stream,  and  thence  by  a  straight  line  due  south. 

Lincolnton  Township  is  bounded  on  the  west  by  the  Howard's 
Creek  Township  line  just  described,  and  on  the  east  by  a  line  run- 
ning north  and  south  about  two  and  one-half  miles  from  the  town 
of  Lincolnton.  Ironton  Township  extends  from  this  eastern  boundary 
of  Lincolnton  Township  to  a  north  and  south  line  approximately 
seven,  miles  from  the  Catawba  River.  Catawba  Springs  Township 
extends  from  this  boundary  of  Ironton  Township  eastward  to  the 
Catawba  River,  which  is  the  county  boundary  line. 

ROADS 

Lincoln  County  has  a  splendid  sj^stem  of  roads.  The  board  of 
county  commissioners  are  very  far-seeing  and  progressive,  and  have 
authorized  the  issuance  of  county  bonds  to  complete  additional 
hard-surface  roads.  The  State  Highway  Commission  is  also  build- 
ing hard-surface  roads  in  Lincoln  County.  When  this  county  pro- 
gram and  State  program  are  completed  Lincoln  County  will  have 
an  excellent  system  of  roads.  Most  of  the  roads  in  the  countj^  are 
gravel,  and  are  in  splendid  condition. 

POPULATION 

The  people  of  Lincoln  County  are  from  thrifty,  industrious,  Anglo- 
Saxon  stock.  There  are  no  cities  in  the  county.  The  county-seat,  the 
town  of  Lincolnton,  is  a  very  progressive  community  of  about  five 
thousand  people. 


8  Lincoln  County  Schools 

North  Brook  Township.  North  Brook  Township  is  purely  agricul- 
tural. About  half  of  the  land  is  cultivated  by  owners  and  the  other 
half  by  tenants.  The  population  has  shown  an  increase  of  525  people 
in  the  last  thirty  years,  or  since  1890,  a  growth  from  1,956  to  2,481. 

Howard's  Creek  Township.  This  township  is  also  agricultural. 
Its  total  population  has  increased  from  2,538  in  1890  to  2,854  in  1920, 
or  an  increase  of  316. 

Lincolnton  Township.  This  township  includes  the  town  of  Lincoln- 
ton,  and  together  with  the  town  has  shown  a  steady  growth  since 
1890.  Its  population  in  1890  was  3,807  and  in  1920  was  6,829.  In 
area  it  is  the  smallest  township  in  the  county,  but  contains  practically 
all  of  the  railroad  mileage  in  the  county,  and  is  the  industrial  center 
for  Lincoln  County.  The  south  fork  of  the  Catawba  River  furnishes 
water-power  for  mills  and  its  sides  from  Lincolnton  to  the  Gaston 
County  line  are  lined  with  various  cotton  mills. 

Ironton  Township.  Ironton  Township  is  agricultural.  Its  popula- 
tion has  increased  from  2,084  to  2,854,  or  an  increase  of  770  since 
1890.  The  southwestern  corner  of  the  township  is  crossed  by  the 
Seaboard  Air  Line  Railroad. 

Catawba  Springs  Township.  Catawba  Springs  Township  has  de- 
creased in  population  from  3,243  to  2,852,  or  a  loss  of  391  smce  1890. 
It  is  strictly  agricultural. 

The(  following  table  will  show  the  population  of  Lincoln  County 
by  townships  for  the  last  four  census  periods. 


TABLE    I 

Census  Statistics  for  Each  Township  in  Lincoln  County  for  Each 
Census  Period,  1890  to  1920 


1890 

1900 

1910 

1920 

Catawba  Springs  Township,  including  Denver  town 

.    3,058 
185 

2,538 

3,591 
199 

2,765 

3,536 

282 

2,894 
175 

2,846 
107 

5,355 
2,413 

2,501 

2,852 

Howard's  Creek  Township,  including  Grouse  town . 

2,854 

2,084 

2,359 

2,846 

Lincolton  Township,  including  Lincolnton  town 

2,950 

957 

1,956 

4,427 
828 

2,356 

6,829 

2,481 

12,586 

15,498 

17,132 

17,862 

*Incorporated.  in  1907. 
tincorporated    in    1909. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 


The  population  of  the  county  as  a  whole  has  increased  from  12,586 
in  1890  to  17,862  in  1920.  It  is  evident  that  the  large  part  of  this 
growth  was  due  to  the  growth  of  the  city  of  Lincolnton. 

On  the  basis  of  the  above  table  showing  the  census  of  each  town- 
ship in  the  county  since  1890,  an  estimate  was  made  of  the  population 
that  might  be  expected  by  townships  in  1940  on  the  basis  of  the 
population  since  1890.  On  Figure  2  the  straight  lines  represent  the 
estimated  population  of  each  township. 


SCHOOL  POPULATION 

The  school  population,  according  to  the  census  statistics  for  the 
schools  of  Lincoln  County  since  1915,  has  shown  somewhat  the  same 
trend  as  the  population  statistics  given  above.  The  school  census  of 
Lincolnton  Township,  while  it  has  shown  a  steady  rise,  has  not 
increased  as  much  as  the  population  census.  The  following  table 
gives  the  school  census  for  each  township*  of  Lincoln  County  from 
1915-16  to  1922-23. 


10 


Lincoln  Cotjnty  Schools 


TABLE  II 

School  Census  Statistics  fok  the  Townships  of  Lincoln  County, 

1915  to  1923 


North  Brook  Township 

Howard's  Creek  Township. . 

Lincolnton  Townshipf 

Ironton  Township 

Catawba  Springs  Township. 
County 


1915 
1916 


568 
1,083 
874 
774 
723 


4,022 


1916 
1917 


810 
1,041 
892 
680 
733 


4,156 


1917 
1918 


864 
1,025 
929 
674 
816 


4,308 


1918 
1919 


878 
1,062 
934 
670 
805 


4,399 


1919 
1920 


1,120 
1,047 

757 
712 


4,530 


1920 
1921 


914 

1,230 

1,045 

849 

697 


4,735 


1921 
1922 


921 
1,292 
1,191 

910 

722 


5,036 


1922 
1923 


1,177 

1,043 

919 

815 


4,832 


*The  figures  given  here  are  for  townships.  Figures  for  each  scliool  district  in  the  county 
are  in  the  hands  of  the  county  board  of  education.. 

fFigures  do  not  include  the  city  schools  of  Lincolnton. 

AVERAGE  DAILY  ATTENDANCE  STATISTICS 

The  average  daily  attendance  in  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County  has 
had  an  increase  from  2,486  in  1915-16  to  3,029  in  1922-23.  The  aver- 
age daily  attendance  showed  a  decrease  during  the  period  1916  to 
1919-20,  but  a  substantial  increase  since  that  period.  The  average 
daily  attendance  in  the  schools  of  each  township*  is  given  in  the  fol- 
lowing table.  Figure  3  shows  graphically  the  figures  of  the  table 
given  below. 

TABLE  III 

Average  Daily  Attendance  for  the  Townships  of  Lincoln  County, 

1915  TO  1923 


1922 
1923 


North  Brook  Township 

Howard's  Creek  Township.. 

Lincolnton  Townshipf 

Ironton  Township 

Catawba  Springs  Township. 
County 


1915 
1916 

1916 
1917 

1917 
1918 

1918 
1919 

1919. 
1920 

1920 
1921 

1921 
1922 

447 

453 

506 

510 

495 

540 

584 

679 

651 

608 

619 

627 

752 

814 

.   511 

516 

485 

452 

526 

596 

654 

428 

384 

345 

337 

419 

456 

559 

421 

447 

419 

326 

391 

385 

428 

2,486 

2,451 

2,363 

2,244 

2,458 

2,729 

3,039 

563 
815 
617 
523 
511 
3,029 


*Figures  for  each  school  district  are  in  the  hands  of  the  county  board  of  education. 
fFigures  do  not  include  the  city  schools  of  Lincolnton. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 


11 


In  summing  np  the  population,  school  census,  and  average  daily 
attendance  statistics  for  Lincoln  County  we  reach  the  following 
conclusions : 

1.  There  has  been  no  substantial  increase  in  population  in  any  town- 
ship in  Lincoln  County,  except  Lincolnton  Township. 

2.  The  school  census  has  had  only  a  very  slight  increase  since 
1915-16. 

3.  The  average  daily  attendance  in  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County 
has  increased  about  22  per  cent  since  1915-16. 


CHAPTER  II 

LINCOLN   COUNTY'S   OBLIGATION   TO   ITS   BOYS 
AND  GIRLS 

Lincoln  County  is  under  obligation  to  the  boys  and  girls  to  provide : 

1.  A  standard  elementary  education  for  every  boy  and  girl 
in  Lincoln  County. 

2.  An  accredited  high  school  available  to  every  boy  and  girl 
in  Lincoln  County. 

3.  A  comfortable,  sanitary  building  for  every  boy  and  girl 
in  Lincoln  County. 

4.  That  the  education  of  every  boy  and  girl  in  Lincoln 
County  be  supported  by  all  the  taxable  property  in  the 
county. 

STANDAKD    ELEMENTARY  EDUCATION 

Teacher,  A  standard  elementary  school  must  have  a  welltrained. 
competent  teacher.  All  who  have  made  a  study  of  the  preparation  of 
teachers  agree  that  it  requires  at  least  two  years  of  professional  study 
and  training  above  high  school  to  adequately  prepare  an  elementary 
teacher.  Occasionally  an  individual  is  found  who  with  less  prepara- 
tion than  this  makes  a  success  of  teaching.  Nevertheless,  other  things 
being  equal,  a  teacher  with  this  two  years  of  preparation  will  do  much 
more  efficient  teaching  than  the  teacher  without  the  preparation. 
Also,  the  teacher  who  is  succeeding  without  preparation  would  do 
more  effective  teaching  with  additional  preparation.  It  would  be 
difficult  to  emphasize  too  strongly  the  necessity  of  requiring  adequate 
preparation  for  the  elementary  teachers.  The  teacher  is  the  vital, 
essential  factor  in  a  good  school,  and  it  is  of  primary  importance 
that  every  elementary  teacher  be  well  prepared  and  equipped  for  her 
great  task. 

Teaching  Load.  With  competent  teachers  the  schools  should  be 
organized  so  as  to  secure  the  best  results  from  the  teachers.  Rural 
teachers  have  been  required  to  teach  so  many  grades  that  it  has  been 
impossible  for  them  to  do  efficient  work  in  any.  Other  things  being 
equal,  the  best  results  will  be  attained  when  elementary  schools  are 
large  enough  to  provide  a  sufficient  number  of  pupils  to  justify  a 
teacher  teaching  only  one  grade. 

Equipment.  It  would  be  false  economj^  to  secure  a  competent 
teacher,  organize  the  school  so  as  to  have  her  teach  only  one  grade, 
and  then  fail  to  provide  the  necessary  and  essential  teaching  equip- 
ment. Teaching  equipment  requires  a  very  small  outlay  of  expendi- 
ture, but  is  a  most  important  factor  in  effective  teaching.  Teaching 
without  maps,  charts,  libraries  and  the  like  equipment  is  not  only 
difficult,  but  generally  ineffective  and  barren  in  results. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization  13 

Term.  The  State  Course  of  Study  for  Elementary  Schools  is  based 
upon  an  eight  months  school  term.  The  average  child  will  take  eight 
months  to  complete  each  elementary  grade.  A  pupil  should  have 
eight  mouths  iu  the  fourth  grade  before  promotion  to  the  fifth ;  eight 
months  in  the  fifth  grade  before  promotion  to  the  sixth,  and  so  on  for 
each  elementary  grade.  If  the  term  is  shorter  than  this,  the  average 
boy  or  girl  will  not  be  able  to  make  a  grade  each  year.  With  the 
requirement  of  eight  months  for  each  grade,  it  takes  fifty-six  months 
of  schooling  for  a  pupil  to  complete  the  elementary  school.  With  an 
eight  months  term  a  pupil  can  complete  the  required  work  in  seven 
years,  but  if  only  a  six  months  term  is  provided  it  will  require  a  pupil 
nine  years  and  two  months  to  finish  the  elementary  school.  The  result 
of  the  short  term  is  that  many  of  the  boys  and  girls  drop  out  of  school 
even  before  completing  the  elementary  school,  and  that  they  are  so  old 
by  the  time  they  are  prepared  for  high  school  that  it  is  impossible  for 
them  to  attend  because  of  economic  reasons.  One  of  the  main  causes 
for  so  few  boys  and  girls  entering  and  completing  the  high  schools  is 
the  fact  that  with  a  six  months  term  it  takes  them  so  long  to  become 
ready  for  high  school.  It  is  unfair  to  the  boys  and  girls  to  be  handi- 
capped in  this  way,  and  Lincoln  County  is  under  obligation  to  them 
to  provide  an  eight  months  school  term. 

Our  standards  for  elementary  education  will  then  be  at  least : 

1.  A  competent  teacher  teaching  only  one  grade ; 

2.  Adequate  teaching  equipment ; 

3.  Eight  months  term. 

ACCREDITED   HIGH   SCHOOL 

Lincoln  Countj^  owes  every  boy  and  girl  an  opportunity  of  attend- 
ing an  accredited  high  school.  This  high  school  should  meet,  in  full, 
the  State  requirements  for  an  accredited  high  school.  These  stand- 
ards as  set!  forth  an  page  eight  in  the  pamphlet  "Standardization 
and  Classification  of  Public  Schools  in  North  Carolina,"  are  as  follows: 

a.  Four  year  course  of  study. 

b.  Length  of  term — 8  months. 

c.  Four  whole-time  teachers,  one  of  whom  may  be  a  teacher 
of  vocational  subjects. 

d.  Length  of  recitation  periods,  at  least  45  minutes. 

e.  Fifteen  units  for  graduation. 

f.  Laboratory  facilities  for  teaching  science. 

g.  Library  of  not  fewer  than  300  volumes. 

COMFORTABLE,   SANITARY  BUILDOG 

For  a  school  building  to  be  comfortable  and  sanitary  does  not  mean 
that  it  must  be  elaborate  and  luxurious.     Comfortable,  sanitary,  and 


14  Lincoln  County  Schools 

safe  school  buildings  can  be  built  economically.  The  health  and  well- 
being  of  boys  and  girls  should  not  be  constantly  jeopardized  by 
requiring  them  to  attend  schools  in  buildings  that  are  unhygienic. 

Classrooms.  The  room  in  which  a  child  must  study  and  work  for 
six  hours  a  day  should  be  so  constructed  that  it  will  not  injure  the 
child  physically.  Elementary  pupils  are  called  upon  to  use  their 
eyes  constantly,  and  so  there  should  be  sufficient  light  coming  into 
the  room  from  the  proper  way.  Those  who  have  studied  the  matter 
carefully  say  that  there  should  be  at  least  one-fourth  as  much  window 
area  as  floor  area,  and  that  the  light  should  come  from  the  left. 

The  health  of  the  pupil  certainly  demands  that  the  room  be  well 
heated  and  ventilated.    This  requires  an  adequate  heating  plant. 

Water  Facilities.  A  safe  and  adequate  water  supply  with  sanitary 
and  clean  drinking  facilities  should  be  provided. 

Toilets.  Wherever  possible,  water-flushed  toilets  should  be  installed 
in  the  school  buildings.  The  toilets  should  at  least  meet  all  the 
requirements  of  the  State  Board  of  Health. 

A  comfortable,  sanitary  building  would  be  one  that  would  meet 
these  requirements : 

1.  Standard  classrooms — 

a.  Adequate  floor  and  air  space. 

b.  Well  lighted. 

c.  Well  heated  and  ventilated. 

2.  Sanitary  water  facilities. 

3.  Sanitary  toilet  facilities. 

EDUCATIOJfAL  SUPPORT 

The  County  of  Lincoln  should  be  the  unit  for  the  support  of  the 
education  of  every  boy  and  girl  within  the  county.  It  is  only  by  this 
county'  system  of  support  that  it  will  be  possible  to  meet  the  first 
three  obligations  that  the  county  owes  to  its  boys  and  girls.  There 
are  such  inequalities  in  the  amount  of  taxable  property  to  support 
education  in  the  districts  and  also  in  the  townships  that  the  only 
just  and  equitable  basis  for  school  support  is  the  county.  These 
facts  will  be  presented  later  in  detail. 


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PARTI 

HOW  IS  LINCOLN  COUNTY  MEETING  ITS  OBLIGATION 
TO  ITS  BOYS  AND  GIRLS? 

CHAPTER  III 

IS  LINCOLN  COUNTY  PROVIDING  EVERY  BOY  AND   GIRL 

WITH  OPPORTUNITY  FOR  A  STANDARD 

ELEMENTARY  EDUCATION? 

In  the  school  year  1922-23  Lincoln  County  maintained  forty-eight 
elementary  schools  for  white  children,  exclusive  of  those  in  the  city 
of  Lincolnton.  Special  study  has  been  made  of  these  county  schools, 
and  all  of  the  statistics  given  will  be  for  these  forty-eight  rural 
schools,  and  for  white  pupils  only. 

The  location  of  these  schools,  with  the  name,  number  of  teachers 
employed,  and  enrollment  for  the  j'ear  1922-23,  is  shown  on  the 
accompanying  map  (Figure  4). 

Classifying  the  schools  by  the  number  of  teachers : 

17  were  one-teacher  schools, 
16  were  two-teacher  schools, 
3  were  three-teacher  schools, 
12  were  four  or  more  teacher  schools. 

In  the  location  of  the  schools  of  the  county  there  has  been  no 
definite  county-wide  planning.  As  a  result  of  this  the  county  is  now 
maintaining  too  many  small,  ungraded  and  unorganized  schools.  It 
would  certainly  not  be  expecting  too  much  to  expect  the  rural  school 
to  serve  the  territory  included  within  a  circle  drawn  with  the  school- 
house  as  a  center  and  a  radius  of  two  miles.  Except  under  unusual 
conditions  this  would  not  place  any  patron  of  the  school  more  than 
two  or  two  and  a  half  miles  from  the  school. 

Taking  the  location  of  each  school  in  Lincoln  County  as  a  center 
and  drawing  a  circle  around  it  with  a  radius  of  only  two  miles,  there 
is  a  very  large  amount  of  overlapping.  There  is  one  of  these  circles 
that  includes  five'  schools.  Other  circles  contain  three  schools,  and 
many  two.  There  are  children  living  in  Lincoln  County  that  can 
attend  anj^  one  of  three  schools  and  not  be  two  miles  from  any  of 
them.  This  multiplicity  of  small  schools  is  too  expensive  of  opera- 
tion, too  inefficient  in  its  results,  for  the  county  to  even  consider  con- 
tinuing. Many  of  the  poor  results  of  the  system  are  due  to  this 
large  number  of  small,  inefficient  schools.  Figure  5  shows  the  con- 
dition. 


16 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


TEACHEBS 

In  1922-23  one  hundred  fourteen  teachers  were  employed  to  teach 
in  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County.  The  State  of  North  Carolina 
requires  every  teacher  to  hold  a  certificate,  and  each  type  of  certi- 
ficate represents  a  certain  amount  of  training  and  preparation.  The 
type  of  certificate  held  by  the  teacher  will  then  show  the  amount  of 
preparation  she  has  had. 

In  the  table  given  below  the  number  of  years  training  above  elemen- 
tary school  is  placed  in  the  first  column  opposite  the  kind  of  certifi- 
cate held.  The  County  Certificate  represents  two  years  of  study  in 
high  school,  or  completion  of  the  ninth  grade.  If  a  teacher  holds  a 
Provisional  A  or  B  or  a  Temporary  Certificate,  she  has  had  the  equiv- 
alent of  a  tenth  grade  education.  Provisional  Elementary  and  Ele- 
mentary B  represents  graduation  from  a  standard  high  school,  plus 
one  summer  school  of  six  weeks.  Table  IV  shows  the  number  and 
the  per  cent  of  teachers  in.  Lincoln  County  holding  each  grade  of 
certificate. 

TABLE  IV 

Lincoln  County  Teachers,  1922-23 


CERTIFICATE 


County 

Provisional  A  and  B  and  Temp 

Provisional  Elementary  and  Elementary  B 
Elementary  A 

Primary,  Gr.  Gr.  and  H.  S.-C 

Primary,  Gr.  Gr.  and  H.  S.-B 

Primary,  Gr.  Gr.  and  H.  S.-A  and  Specials 


Number 

Years 

Above 

Elementary 

School 


Number 


114 


Per 
Cent 


5.3 
15.8 
48.2 


100.0 


The  standard  preparation  for  an  elementary  teacher,  as  stated  above, 
is  two  years  above  high  school,  or  six  years  above  elementary  school. 
Only  26  of  the  114  teachers  in  Lincoln  County,  or  23  per  cent  of  the 
teachers,  have  had  two  years  or  more  of  training  above  high  school. 
This  means  that  77  per  cent  of  the  teachers  of  Lincoln  County  have 
had  less  than  standard  preparation.  The  above  table  shows  that  48.2 
per  cent  of  the  teachers  hold  certificates  that  are  equivalent  to  gradu- 
ation from  high  school,  plus  only  six  weeks  of  training.  The  striking 
thing,  however,  about  the  study  of  the  teachers  is  that  21  per  cent  of 
them  have  not  finished  high  school.  Only  35  per  cent  of  the  teaching 
force  of  Lincoln  County  have  had  more  training  than  high  school  plus 
six  weeks  of  summer  school  work. 


LINCOLN     COUNTY     NORTH     CAROLINA 


FIGURE  5 


^ 


V      / 


-""-^   /  /'' 


/ 


."^;.-''?°ffc. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 


17 


Teachers  who  have  not  themselves  finished  high  school  are  teaching 
21  per  cent  of  the  boys  and  girls  of  Lincoln  County.  Adding  to  this 
21  per  cent  the  45.8  per  cent  of  the  pupils  taught  by  teachers  with  only 
a  high  school  education  plus  six  weeks  of  summer  school  shows  that 
66.8  per  cent  of  the  boys  and  girls  of  Lincoln  County  are  taught  by 
teachers  who  have  no  more  than  a  high  school  education.  The  per- 
centage of  the  boys  and  girls  within  the  county  taught  by  teachers  hold- 
ing each  class  of  certificate  is  shown  in  Table  V. 


TABLE   V 
Pek  Cent  of  Pupils  Taught  by  Teachers  Holding  Bach  Class  of  Certificate 


certificate 


County 

Provisional  A  and  B  and  Temp 

Provisional  Elementary  and  Elementary  B 

Elementary  A 

Primary,  G.  G.  and  H.  S.-C 

Primary,  G.  G.  and  H.  S.-B 

Primary,  G.  G.  and  H.  S.-A  and  Specials.. 


Per  Cent 
of  Pupils 

Taught 


The  city  schools  in  Lincblnton  are  securing  much  better  teachers 
as  measured  by  the  certificate  held  than  are  the  schools  of  the  county. 
There  are  no  teachers  in  the  Lincolnton  schools  who  have  not  gradu- 
ated from  high  school.  There  are  seven  who  have  graduated  from  high 
school  and  have  had  only  six  weeks  of  professional  training,  but  18  out 
of  the  27  teachers  in  the  system,  or  67  per  cent,  have  had  two  years  of 
preparation  above  graduation  from  high  school.  The  preparation  of 
the  teachers  in  the  Lincolnton  schools  is  shown  below. 


TABLE  VI 

Lincolnton  Teachers,  1922-23 


CERTIFICATE 

Number 

Years 

Above 

Elementary 

School 

Number 

Per 
Cent 

Provisional  Elementary  and  Elementary  B 

4 
5 
6 
7 
8 

7 
2 
7 
3 
8 

26 

Elementary  A 

7 

Primary,  Gr.  Gr.  and  H.  S.-C 

26 

Primary,  Gr.  Gr.  and  H.  S.-B 

11 

Primary,  Gr.  Gr.  and  H.  S.-A  and  Specials 

30 

27 

100 

18  .  Lincoln  County  Schools 

EQUIPMENT 

There  is  almost  a  total  lack  of  teaching  equipment  in  the  schools  of 
Lincoln  County.  It  is  a  rare  thing  that  one  finds  a  map  or  globe  or 
chart  in  the  elementary  schools.  Thirty-nine  per  cent  of  all  the  pupils, 
both  elementary  and  high  school,  within  the  County  are  attending 
schools  that  have  absolutely  no  libraries.  It  will  require  very  little 
expenditure  to  provide  some  of  the  necessary  teaching  equipment,  and 
it  is  impossible  for  the  teachers  of  the  County  to  get  as  good  results 
as  they  should  without  this  equipment. 

TERM 

What  per  cent  of  the  boys  and  girls  in  Lincoln  County  have  the 
opportunity  of  attending  school  for  the  standard  term  of  eight  months  ? 
During  the  school  year  1922-23  only  20.4  per  cent  attended  schools 
that  ran  for  eight. months ;  so  that  the  county  was  providing  a  standard 
term  for  only  one-fifth  of  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  county.  Oppor- 
tunity was  provided  3.8  per  cent  of  the  pupils  to  attend  school  for 
seven  months.  For  75.8  per  cent  of  the  pupils  in  the  county  a  term 
of  only  six  months  was  provided.  In  other  words,  in  1922-23  Lincoln 
County  provided : 

Eight  months  school  for  20.1  per  cent  of  its  boys  and  girls ; 

Seven  months  school  for  3.8  per  cent  of  its  boys  and  girls ; 

Six  months  school  for  75.8  per  cent  of  its  boys  and  girls. 

Lincoln  County  virtually  said  to  79.6  per  cent  of  the  boys  and  girls 
in  the  county,  "We  will  provide  you  only  a  six  months  school  term, 
thus  giving  you  no  chance  to  make  one  grade  a  year.  Others  boys  and 
girls  in  the  county  can  attend  school  for  eight  months  in  the  year,  and 
in  this  way  they  are  able  to  make  a  grade  each  year,  but  you  can  only 
have  six  months.  It  will  mean  that  you  will  have  to  take  at  least  nine 
years  and  two  months  to  finish  the  elementary  school,  while  other  boys 
and  girls  with  an  eight  months  term  can  do  the  work  in  seven  years. 
It  means  that  there  is  practically  uo  chance  of  your  reaching  high 
school  before  you  have  gotten  so  old  that  it  will  be  almost  impossible  for 
you  to  be  spared  from  the  farm  to  go  to  school.  But  we  can  provide 
you  with  only  a  six  months  term. ' ' 

The  result  of  this  has  been  that  literally  hundreds  of  Lincoln  County 
boys  and  girls  have  dropped  out  of  school,  even  before  completing  the 
elementary  school,  and  that  very,  very  few  ever  enter  the  high  schools 
at  all.  Evidence  of  this  is  given  in  the  table  below,  which  gives  the  en- 
rollment in  the  Lincoln  County  schools  by  grades  for  a  period  of  eleven 
years. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 


19 


TABLE  VII 
Enrollment  in  the  Schools  of  Lincoln  County  by  Grades  Since  191'2-13 


Grade 

1912 
1913 

1913 
1914 

1914 
1915 

1915 
1916 

1916 

1917 

1917 
1918 

1918 
1919 

1919 
1920 

1920 
1921 

1921 
1922 

1922 
1923 

1 

910 

838 

843 

1,019 

897 

876 

961 

1.022 

1,022 

1,090 

996 

2 

406 

628 

635 

621 

426 

413 

388 

459 

535 

547 

534 

3 

469 

661 

665 

583 

410 

401 

433 

430 

489 

550 

595 

4 

435 

559 

571 

578 

521 

445 

411 

413 

412 

480 

517 

5 

409 

432 

451 

514 

430 

404 

408 

451 

387 

390 

416 

6 

361 

312 

323 

342 

364 

408 

376 

291 

381 

358 

331 

7 

268 

281 

305 

279 

214 

242 

286 

345 

266 

343 

36 

8 

91 

81 

102 

158 

193 

163 

127 

134 

200 

165 

140 

9 

45 

32 

47 

85 

40 

54 

25 

50 

85 

146 

111 

10 

26 

17 

38 

38 

29 

50 

44 

43 

31 

38 

76 

11 

20 

3 

18 

13 

40 

12 

13 

24 

25 

33 

In  the  fall  of  1912,  when  the  doors  of  the  Lincoln  Countj^  schools 
were  opened,  910  entered  the  first  grade.  If  the  county  had  fulfilled 
its  obligation  to  these  boys  and  girls  and  had  provided  them  with  an 
eight  months  term,  competent  teachers  and  comfortable  buildings, 
practically  all  of  these  910  children*  would  have  been  in  the  second 
grade  the  following  j^ear.  But  instead  of  910  in  the  second  grade  in 
1913-14,  there  were  only  628,  and  this  number  of  course  included  those 
who  were  not  promoted  from  the  second  grade  in  1912-13.  There  were 
a  few  more  in  the  third  grade  in  1914-15  than  there  were  in  the  second 
grade  in  1913-14,  caused  probably  by  the  hold-overs  in  that  grade. 
From  this  time  on  the  loss  each  year  is  astounding.  Less  than  one- 
third  of  the  910  that  started  the  first  grade  in  1912-13  reached  the 
seventh  grade  in  the  year  that  they  should  be  expected  to  be  there. 
Only  134  of  this  group  began  high  school  in  1919-20,  while  last  year, 
1922-23,  only  33  out  of  the  910  had  reached  the  eleventh  grade.  A 
class  of  910  entering  in  the  first  grade  and  33,  or  3.6  per  cent  of  them, 
reaching  the  eleventh  grade  in  normal  time ! 

These  facts  are  presented  graphically  in  Figure  6. 


20 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


*This  is  granting  that  all  pupils  in  the  second  grade  were  in  the  first 
grade  the  year  before.  The  chances  are  that  many  of  the  pupils  in  the 
second  grade  were  hold-overs  in  this  grade.  This  applies  to  each  grade  in 
this  discussion.     Conditions  might  be  even  worse  than  these  figures  indicate. 


A  study  of  the  enrollment  of  the  Lincoln  County  schools  for  the 
year  1922-23  by  age  and  grade  shows,  more  clearly  than  the  facts 
above,  the  results  of  the  short  school  term.  The  principal  of  each 
school  in  the  county  reported  at  the  end  of  the  school  year  the  age 
and  grade  of  all  the  pupils  in  his  school.  That  is,  the  principal  re- 
ported the  number  of  pupils  six  years  old  in  the  first  grade,  the  num- 
ber seven  years  old  in  the  first  grade,  the  number  eight  years  old  in 
the  first  grade,  and  so  on  for  each  grade  each  year.  By  adding  the 
reports  of  all  the  principals  an  age-grade  table  was  made  for  the 
county.    This  table  is  given  below. 


COTJNTY-WIDE  PlAN  OF  ORGANIZATION 


21 


TABLE  VIII 
Enrollment  by  Age  and  Grade* 


Age 

1st 
Grade 

2nd 
Grade 

3rd 

Grade 

4th 
Grade 

5th 
Grade 

6th 
Grade 

7th 
Grade 

8tn 
Grade 

9th 
Grade 

10th 
Grade 

11th 
Grade 

Total 

5 

11 

6 

7 

409 
252 

416 

1 
22 

11 

166 

375 

1 

16 

sll 

178' 
74 
43 
18 
14 
5 
3 

86 
150 

453 

■■* 

1 
5 

9 

97 
71 
39 
24 
10 
8 
3 

63 
116 

401 

10 

147 
87 
58 
38 
10 
5 

59 
80 

441 

8 

11 

107 
84 
70 
41 
11 
1 
1 

37 

77 

376 

2 

12 

103 
65 

59 

22 

8 

2 

1 

31 
61 

393 

13 

74 
85 
28 
16 
4 
3 
1 

16 
40 

339 

3 

1 

14 

86 
84 
51 
30 
8 
5 

9 
19 

344 

15 

29 
20 
18 
10 
5 

1 

19 

203 

18 

29 
25 
14 
15 

9 

7 

153 

1 

17 

23 
16 
11 
3 

111 

18 

8 
5 
3 

60 

19 

42 

20 

6 

21 
and 

1 

1 

over 

T( 

)tal 

996 

534 

595 

517 

416 

331 

365 

140 

111 

76 

33 

4,114 

*In  case  a  child  is  promoted  during  tlie  school  term,  report  his  enroll- 
ment in  the  higher  grade  only. 

Age  as  of  September  1,  1922. 

Similar  reports  made  out  by  Principal  of  each  school.  Above  report  com- 
pilation of  Principal's  Final  Report. 


A  boy  or  girl  should  enter  the  first  grade  at  the  age  of  six  or  seven 
years,  and  should  normally  be  promoted  to  the  next  higher  grade 
each  year.  He  should  be  in  the  second  grade  at  the  age  of  seven 
or  eight  years,  the  third  grade  at  the  age  of  eight  or  nine  years,  and 
so  on  for  each  year  and  grade  through  the  elementary  school.  If  a 
pupil  enters  the  first  grade  at  the  age  of  six  or  seven  years  and  makes 
one  grade  each  year,  he  will  pass  through  the  elementary  school  at 
the  normal  age.  In  the  above  table  two  years  are  considered  as  normal 
age  for  each  grade ;  that  is,  a  child  seven  or  eight  years  old  is  consid- 


22 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


ered  of  normal  age  for  the  second  grade,  and  a  child  eight  or  nine 
years  old  is  considered  of  normal  age  for  the  third  grade.  By  thus 
allowing  two  age  years  for  each  grade,  a  pnpil  could  begin  school  at 
the  age  of  six  years,  fail  a  promotion  one  year,  and  still  reach  the 
seventh  grade  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  which  would  be  considered 
normal  age  for  that  grade. 

On  the  above  table  are  heavy  lines,  and  all  the  pupils  falling 
within  these  heavy  lines  are  considered  of  normal  age  for  their  grade. 
This  is  the  group  of  pupils  that  should  contain  by  far  the  larger 
per  cent  of  all  the  pupils  in  the  county.  If  a  pupil  advances  through 
the  elementary  school  and  reaches  a  certain  grade  at  an  age  younger 
than  the  normal  age  for  that  grade,  this  pupil  is  called  ''under  age." 
On  the  above  table  all  the  pupils  shown  above  the  heavy  lines  are 
"under  age"  for  their  grade.  For  instance,  there  is  one  child  in 
the  fourth  grade  that  is  only  seven  years  old,  while  the  normal  age  for 
the  fourth  grade  is  eight  or  nine  years  old.  This  pupil  is  "under 
age"  for  his  grade. 

Those  pupils  who  have  failed  to  make  a  grade  each  year  and  who 
ire  older  than  the  normal  group  for  their  grade  are  called  ' '  over  age. ' ' 
All  the  pupils  shown  on  the  above  table  below  the  heavy  lines  are 
"over  age"  for  their  grade.  There  are  147  pupils  in  the  third  grade 
that  are  ten  years  of  age,  while  the  normal  age  for  the  third  grade  is 
eight  or  nine  years.  These  147  pupils  then  are  "over  age"  for  their 
grade. 

The  following  table  gives  the  number  and  per  cent  in  each  grade  of 
the  pupils  that  are  over  age,  normal  age,  and  under  age. 

TABLE   IX 

Per  Cent  op  Total  Number  of  Children  in  Each  Grade  Who  Are  Under 
Age,  Normal  Age,  and  Over  Age 


Grade 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7- 

8 

9 

10 

11 

Total 


UNDER  AGE 


.3 
1.8 

.2 
4.3 

.2 
3.8 

.3 
1.5 

.1 

.9 

2.2 

1.4 

3.9 

3.0 

1.7 

Totals     . 

.9 

2.1 

'.5 

4.0 

1.8 

2.2 

1.4 

3.9 

3.0 

1.8 

NORMAL  AGE 


66.4 

51.8 

39.7 

34.6 

33.4 

34.4 

25.2 

40.0 

25.2 

26.3 

48.5 

44.  a 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 
Table  IX — Continued 


23 


Grade 


Total 


OVER  AGE 


One  year 

Two  years 

Three  years 

Four  years 

Five  years 

More  than  five  years. 
Totals 


17.9 

18.2 

24.7 

20.7 

24.8 

22.4 

23.6 

20.7 

26.1 

30.3 

24.2 

7.4 

13.3 

14.6 

16.2 

15.6 

25.7 

23.0 

14.3 

22.5 

21.0 

15.2 

4.3 

7.3 

9.7 

13.5 

14.2 

8.5 

14.0 

12.9 

12.6 

14.5 

9.1 

1.8 

4.5 

6.4 

7.9 

5.3 

4.8 

8.2 

7.1 

13.5 

3.9 

1.4 
.8 

1.9 
2.1 

1.7 
1.0 

2.1 
.4 

1.9 
.7 

1.2 
1.1 

2.2 
1.7 

3.6 

33.6 

47.3 

58.1 

60.8 

62.5 

63.7 

72.7 

58.6 

74.2 

69.7 

48.5 

21.4 
14.9 
9.6 
5.3 
1.7 
1.0 


53. 


The  striking"  thing  about  this  table  is  the  fact  that  although  33  per 
per  cent  of  the  children  in  the  first  grade  are  over  age,  this  per  cent 
of  over  ageness  constantly  increases,  through  the  elementary  school 
until  we  reach  the  seventh  grade,  where  73  per  cent  of  the  pupils  are 
over  age  for  their  grade.  This  shows  that  the  chances  are  only  about 
one  to  three  that  the  children  T\nll  reach  the  seventh  grade  on  normal 
time.    This  is  primarily  due  to  the  short-term  school. 

A  study  of  the  following  chart  will  show  clearly  how,  as  we  progress 
through  the  grades  of  the  Lincoln  County  schools,  the  per  cent  of 
those  pupils  who  are  normal  age  constantly  decreases,  while  the  per 
cent  of  those  who  are  over  age  constantly  increases  until  we  reach 
the  seventh  grade.  During  the  four  years  of  the  high  school  the  per 
cents  fluctuate  because  of  the  small  number  of  pupils  in  high  school, 
and  because  of  the  fact  that  as  a  general  rule  only  those  who  have 
reached  high  school  on  normal  time  go  through  the  four  years  of 
high  school. 


24 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


In  order  to  compare  the  per  cent  of  pupils  that  are  over  age  in  the 
schools  of  Lincoln  County  with  a  school  system  that  runs  a  longer 
length  of  term,  a  table  similar  to  Table  IX  was  made  out  for  the  city 
school  system  of  Lincolnton.  This  school  system  has  been  running 
with  a  nine  months  term  for  some  years.  The  results  are  shown 
clearly  in  Table  X. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 


25 


TABLE  X 

The  Number  and  Per  Cent  of  Total  Number  of  Children  in  Each  Grade 

Who  Are  Under  Age,  Normal  Age  and  Over  Age  in 

Schools  of  Lincolnton. 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

Total 

Number 
Underage . 

16 
79 
37 

9 

69 
44 

6 
50 
46 

6 
37 

32 

7 
34 
22 

9 

34 
18 

11 
30 

22 

2 

27 
13 

4 
16 
6 

1 

24 

4 

71 

Normal  age..  .. 

99 
35 

499 

Over  age 

279 

134 

132 

122 

102 

75 

63 

61 

63 

42 

26 

29 

849 

Per  Cent 
Under  age 

12 
60 
28 

7 
57 
36 

6 
49 
45 

8 
49 
43 

11 
54 
35 

15 
56 
29 

48 
35 

5 
64 
31 

15 
62 
23 

3 
83 

14 

8 

Normal  age _. 

Over  age 

74 
26 

59 
33 

Instead  of  having  73  per  cent  of  the  pupils  over  age  by  the  time 
they  reach  the  seventh  grade,  the  city  of  Lincolnton  has  only  29  per 
cent  over  age.  The  average  over  ageness  for  the  Lincolnton  schools 
is  only  33  per  cent,  while  the  average  over  ageness  for  the  schools  of 
Lincoln  County  is  54  per  cent.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  cause 
for  this  difference  lies  in  the  fact  that  Lincolnton  has  seen  fit  to 
maintain  a  school  term  of  sufficient  length  so  that  the  pupils  could 
progress  normally  from  grade  to  grade,  making  one  grade  each  school 
year. 


CHAPTER  IV 

IS  LINCOLN  COUNTY  PROVIDING  EVERY   BOY  AND  GIRL 

WITH  AN  OPPORTUNITY  TO  ATTEND  AN  ACCREDITED 

HIGH  SCHOOL? 

There  is  today  no  accredited  high  school  in  Lincoln  County  outside 
of  the  city  of  Lincolnton.  Several  of  the  schools  of  the  county  are 
teaching  high  school  grades,  but  the  work  and  equipment  is  not  of 
sufficient  standard  to  be  accredited  by  the  State.  Four  of  the  schools 
teach  through  the  tenth  grade,  three  through  the  ninth  grade,  and 
twQ  schools  through  the  eighth  grade  only.  Each  of  these  schools 
has  only  a  few  high  school  pupils.  It  requires  a  large  number  of  high 
school  pupils  to  maintain  an  accredited  high  school.  With  a  few 
pupils  a  sufficient  number  of  teachers  cannot  be  employed  to  give 
the  courses  necessary  in  high  school,  and  the  cost  of  instruction  be- 
comes so  high  that  it  is  almost  prohibitive. 

During  the  school  year  1922-23  the  following  pupils  were  enrolled 
in  all  of  the  high  schools  of  the  county,  outside  of  the  city  of  Lin- 
colnton : 

140  pupils  in  the  eighth  grade 
111  pupils  in  the  ninth  grade 
76  pupils  in  the  tenth  grade 
33  pupils  in  the  eleventh  grade 

As  has  been  stated  above,  all  of  these  360  high  school  pupils  were 
every  one  in  schools  that  are  not  recognized  as  standard  schools.  It 
is  urgent  that  the  high  school  system  of  Lincoln  County  be  so  organ- 
ized that  an  accredited  high  school  will  be  accessible  to  every  boy  and 
girl.  The  people  of  Lincoln  County  need  no  convincing  of  the  value 
of  accredited  high  school  work,  for  there  is  very  strong  sentiment  in 
the  county  for  accredited  high  schools.  Several  boys  and  girls  within 
the  county  have  attempted  to  enter  colleges  in  the  State  and  were 
unable  to  do  so  because  the  work  of  their  school  was  not  standard. 
Girls  have  attempted  to  enter  the  teaching  profession  and  w^ere  unable 
to  secure  certificates  because  the  work  was  not  accredited.  The  peo- 
ple of  Lincoln  County  will  welcome  any  plan  that  is  practical  and 
economical  and  at  the  same  time  will  provide  an  accredited  high 
school  for  every  boy  and  girl  within  the  county. 


Lincoln  County 


PLATE  I 


^H^'          '^i^S-*'*'      -j^ImIm   i         *<-■      -■•''WiW 

1J!^ 

^Hral 

Klf^^'^fe-  jj^ 

^1 

■■j 

^hHhI 

H 

^^^1 

HHHIM@ 

3B 

BHHhHJhI^H! 

^^BB^HSBSKB^^^^^''^^'*"'^^^^s^'^'^^'*''l.^^^S^M^u 

l^gjUHH 

IHh^hI 

|H^^^^  ^^^^^HH 

■HHj 

^^H^^^HI 

|H|ipi|pi^^         '          ^  <(  ^ -'#-^^^^^0'^^ 

HHHI 

I^H^^HIi^HIl 

^^^^^^^^■^^^^^r                  '  ^'^^^^i^H^^^H^^^SIHHHI 

HiiHBm 

wt^ 

^"^^^H 

mi 

A THE     "center    of    THE    DISTKICT"     HAPPENED     TO    BE    IN     A    COW     PASTURE 

WITH  NO  EOAD  LEADING  TO  THE  SCHOOL. 


B LINCOLN    COUNTY    IS    PROVIDING    A    COMFORTABLE,    SANITARY    BUILDING    FOR 

THE  BOYS  AND  GIRLS   OF   THIS  DISTRICT. 


CHAPTER  V 

IS  LINCOLN  COUNTY  PROVIDING  A  COMFORTABLE,  SAN- 
ITARY BUILDING  FOR  EVERY  BOY  AND  GIRL 
IN  THE  COUNTY? 

There  were  48  school  buildings  used  in  Lincoln  County  outside  of 
the  city  of  Lincolnton  in  1922-23.  Each  one  of  these  buildings  was 
visited  and  scored  on  a  score-card  prepared  by  the  Division  of  School- 
house  Planning  of  the  State  Department  of  Education.  According 
to  this  score-card  a  school  building  is  scored  upon  seven  major  items. 
These  items  with  the  possible  score  that  can  be  made  for  each  item 
are  as  follows : 

Location     65 

Site    170 

Building    190 

Class  Rooms 200 

Equipment 200 

Outside  Equipment 100 

Toilets    75 

Total 1,000 

Each  one  of  the  major  items  was  subdivided  into  features  making 
up  these  items.    A  copy  of  the  score-card  which  was  used  follows. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 
Score  Card  for  Rural  School  Buildings 


29 


ITEMS 


I.    Location: 

L    Accessibility 

2.    Environment 

II.    Site: 

1.  Size 

2.  Shape 

3.  Drainage 

4.  Slope  of  land 

5.  Nature  of  Soil 

6.  Playground 

7.  Shrubbery  and  Flowers 

8.  Walks,  Drives  and  Parking  Space- 
Ill.    Buildings: 

1.  Location  on  Site 

2.  Orientation 

3.  Gross  Structure  and  Plan 

(a)  Material 

(b)  Windows 

(c)  Doors 

(d)  Foundation 

(c)    General  Appearance 

(f)     Condition 

IV.    Class  Rooms: * 


VI. 


1.  Construction  and  Finish 

2.  Size,  Shape  and  Adequate  Number. 

3.  Lighting 

(a)  Window  Placement 

(b)  Glass  Area 

(c)  Shades 

4.  Cloak  Rooms 

(a)  Location 

(b)  Ventilation 

5.  Ventilation 

6.  General  Appearances 

(a)  Arrangement 

(b)  Neatness  and  Cleanhness 

(c)  Paint  Colors 

.    Equipment: 

1.  Desks  and  Seats 

2.  Heating  Facilities 

3.  Water  Containers 

4.  Blackboards 

5.  Teacher's  Desk  and  Supphes 

6.  Bookcases,  Library 

7.  Maps  and  Globes 

8.  Pictures 

9.  Special  Equipment 

(a)  Sand  Tables 

(b)  Charts,  Etc 

Outside  Equipment: 


VII. 


Water  Supply 

Fuel  Storage 

Flag  Pole. 

Garages  and  Sheds. 

Toilets: 

Location  on  Site 

Type 

Adequacy 

Condition 


Perfect  Score 


40 
50 
100 


200 


200 


100 


School  Score 


30 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


Each  building  in  the  county  was  scored  by  three  judges,  and  the 
median  score  of  the  three  judges  taken  for  the  final  score  of  the  build- 
ing. For  instance,  on  the  first  item  on  the  score-card,  "Accessibil- 
ity," if  one  judge  scored  20,  another  25,  and  another  30,  the  median 
score,  or  25,  was  given  this  building  on  "Accessibility."  This  kept 
the  scores  of  any  building  from  being  materially  affected  by  the 
judgment  of  any  one  man.  The  scores  that  each  building  made  on 
each  of  the  items  on  the  score-card  are  given  below. 


TABLE  XI 
School  Btjilding  Scores 


COUNTY 

Loca- 
tion 

65 

Site 
170 

Build- 
ing 

190 

Class 
Room 

200 

Equip- 
ment 

200 

Out- 
side 
Equip- 
ment 

100 

Toilets 
75 

Total 
1,000 

1.  Nortti  Brook  Con 

2.  Catawba  Springs  Con 

3.  Howard's  Creek  Con 

60 
60 
65 
60 
60 
55 
60 
55 
50 
55 
55 
40 
50 
60 
45 
30 
42 
38 
40 
45 
42 
38 
45 
45 
50 
35 
35 
13 
40 
-^     35 
30 
50 
40 
25 
45 
35 
30 
20 
35 
15 
12 
30 
30 
25 
25 
25 
7 
10 

117 

103 
94 
86 
80 
67 
83 
83 
64 
69 
72 
82 
51 
91 
66  > 
54 
49 
46 
46 
48 
53 
46 
47 
70 
59 
50 
50 
25 
55 
40 
40 
50 
52 
36 
41 
34 
35 
35 
37 
36 
30 
27 
32 
21 
27 
26 
24 
16 

170 
183 
185 
155 
165 
148 
95 
98 
92 
108 
113 
119 
82 
78 
76 
93 
80 
55 
72 
76 
69 
65 
68 
65 
68 
66 
52 
80 
48 
39 
40 
49 
50 
39 
43 
45 
45 
48 
39 
49 
32 
36 
35 
33 
24 
27 
31 
22 

179 

167 

167 

153 

149 

160 

114 

103 

96 

94 

109 

89 

116 

66 

77 

98 

81 

56 

85 

71 

68 

90 

71 

64 

47 

55 

■  64 

87 

55 

46 

47 

32 

44 

43 

45 

44 

41 

52 

44 

40 

42 

34 

32 

38 

28 

31 

30 

24 

117 
112 
109 
110 
87 
116 
95 
86 
85 
95 
65 
58 
54 
51 
57 
53 
41 
62 
54 
51 
48 
44 
45 
37 
44 
34 
34 
45 
44 
46 
32 
24 
27 
42 
34 
30 
27 
33 
29 
35 
39 
26 
21 
27 
31 
25 
26 
29 

90 
80 
80 
57 
50 
50 
40 
40 
50 
30 
18 
28 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 

•  18 
18 
18 
18 
13 
20 
18 
10 
18 
18 
40 
20 

'18 
23 
20 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 
18 

68 
70 
75 
47 
50 
43 
48 
"50 
40 
18 
30 
33 
40 
13 
32 

19 
40 

8 

20 
30 

34 

19 

23 

6 
13 

801 

775 
775 
668 

5.     Laboratory 

641 
639 

7.     Crouse 

535 
515 

477 

469 

11.  Barnes 

12.  Laurel  Hill     

462 
449 

13.     Hickory  Grove 

411 

14.     Rock  Springs  H.  S. 

377 

371 

16.     Pine  Grove .  -  -  - 

346 

17.  Triangle 

18.  Salem 

330 
315 

315 

309 

21.     Webbs       .  - 

300 

22.  Greenwood 

23.  Flint  Hill 

301 

294 

294 

288 

278 

275 

28.     Mount  Zion      

268 

29.     Shrum    . 

269 

246 

243 

242 

236 

34.    Elm  Grove - 

226 

35.    Elbow  School  .-. 

228 

36.     Hoyles  ..      

212 

209 

206 

39.    McLeans 

202 

40.    Trinity ._.  

193 

179 

42.     Laurel  Hill 

176 

43.     David's  Chapel 

162 

44.     Wilson's 

163 

45.     Bakers     . 

153 

151 

47.    Buffalo 

132 

48.    Beatty's  Ford 

118 

Lincoln  County 


PLATE  II 


-KO   PLAYGKOUND,    ALTHOUGH   IN    THE   OPEN    COUNTRY;     NO   ATTRACTIVENESS, 
ALTHOUGH   SURROUNDED  BY   NATURE'S  BEAUTY. 


-THE    OPPORTUNITY    TO    ATTEND    SCHOOL    IN    A    BUILDING    LIKE    THIS    SHOULD    BE 

GIVEN  every  boy  and  girl  in  Lincoln  county,  not 

JUST   A   FEW   of   THEM. 


Lincoln  County 


PLATE  III 


-ONE    OF    THE    FIRST    MODEKN    BUILDINGS    IN    THE    COUNTY. 
SHOULD    NOT   BE    CONFINED    TO   A   FEW. 


SUCH    ADVANTAGES 


B — THE    BOYS    AND   6IBLS    GET    THEIR    FIRST    IMPRESSIONS    OF    CITIZENSHIP    IN    THE 

ELEMENTARY  SCHOOL.      SHOULD  LINCOLN   COUNTY  BE 

SATISFIED  WITH   THIS? 


Lincoln  County 


PLATE  IV 


A THIS    BUILDING    SCORED    119    POINTS    OUT    OF    A    POSSIBLE    1,000. 


B LINCOLN    COUNTY     SHOLT.D     NOT    EDUCATE    ITS    FUTLTiE    CITIZENS     IN     SUCH 

A    PLACE    AS    THIS. 


34  Lincoln  County  Schools 

In  interpreting  the  scores  made  on  this  score-card  it  will  be  well 
to  note  that  any  building  that  scores  less  than  400  will  not  meet  any 
requirements  of  a  comfortable,  sanitary  building,  and  the  county 
board  of  education  would  be  justified  in  making  provision  to  replace 
any  building  that  scored  less  than  400  points.  Buildings  scoring  be- 
tween 400  and  500  points  may,  by  substantial  improvements,  be  made 
to  meet  the  requirements  for  a  modern,  sanitary  building.  Buildings 
between  500  and  600  should  be  improved,  for  with  very  little  expend- 
iture they  could  be  made  to  meet  the  building  standard.  The  board 
should  take  every  step  necessary  in  order  to  bring  these  buildings 
that  will  have  to  be  used  for  a  few  years  up  to  at  least  a  score  of  800 
on  this  score-card. 

Figure  8  shows  the  score  for  each  building  in  Lincoln  County. 

Location  and  Site.  The  county  board  of  education  has  been  show- 
ing unusually  fine  judgment  in  the  selection  of  the  sites  for  most  of 
the  buildings  in  the  county.  The  locations  of  the  buildings  in  nearly 
every  case  score  very  high.  The  sites  of  the  buildings  are  well  selected, 
but  very  little  improvement  had  been  made  on  the  grounds,  and  so 
did  not  score  as  high  as  these  same  sites  will  score  when  some  atten- 
tion is  paid  to  the  beautification  of  the  grounds.  There  was  an  al- 
most utter  lack  of  playground  equipment,  there  being  only  a  few 
pieces  of  home-made  equipment  found  in  the  county.  A  beginning 
had  been  made  in  providing  basketball  equipment,  but  this  should 
be  extended  and  equipment  provided,  especially  for  the  lower  grade 
pupils. 

Buildings.  The  newer  buildings  have  been  well  constructed  and 
well  planned,  and  while  there  is  nothing  elaborate  or  luxurious  about 
them,  they  are  comfortable  and  sanitary.  The  county  board  of  edu- 
cation has  been  extremely  wise  in  the  type  of  buildings  that  it  has 
been  constructing  within  the  past  few  years.  This  is  especially  true 
of  North  Brook,  Catawba  Springes,  and  Howard's  Creek  Consolidated 
buildings. 

Classrooms.  The  classrooms  in  the  buildings  that  have  scored  be- 
low 400  should  be  abandoned  as  soon  as  possible.  The  classrooms  in 
the  newer  type  of  buildings  meet  the  requirements  for  a  hygienic  class- 
room, for  they  are  well  lighted  and  have  sufficient  floor  space  and  air 
space  for  the  number  of  pupils  within  the  room.  Many  of  the  poorer 
type  of  buildings  are  very  poorly  lighted,  poorly  heated,  and  should 
be  abandoned  as  soon  as  possible. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization 


35 


FIGURE  8 

^Cf/OOL    BUILDING     SCORES 


Perfect 

to  0  0 

North  BrooK  Con. 

601 

Cato  who  Springs  Con 

ns 

/ioworc/Jt  Creek  Con. 

7  7S 

Union  Nigh  School 

666 

Loborafory 

641 

Dak  Grove 

639 

Croupe 

S3S 

L  ov  /Pernor io/  School  SIS 

Dan  ie  Is 

477 

Aabury 

4  6B 

Barnes 

46Z 

Loure/  Hill  iH.C.) 

449 

Hickory  Grove 

411 

Rock  Springs  H-S. 

377 

J  ran  Sfof/on 

371 

Pine    Gro  ve 

346 

Triangle 

330 

Salem 

3  IS 

Macedonia 

SIS 

L  0  YVes  vil/e 

309 

Webhs 

306 

Green  wood 

301 

Flint  Hill 

294 

Mounf-Qin  V/en^ 

294- 

Ridge  Acodemj^ 

286 

Bushejj  Pine 

Z7B 

Hoovers 

Z7S 

Mt.  Zion 

Z68 

Shrunk 

Z60 

Lon^  Shoals 

246 

Southside 

245 

Fair  y'eiY 

242 

Zion 

Z3C 

E/ny  Grove 

228 

El  bo  Yf  School 

226 

Ho^/es 

21  Z 

Hebron 

209 

Graham 

Z06 

li^Lean 

ZOZ 

Triniti/ 

1  93 

Stroup 

1  73 

Laurel  Hi// (a/. B.) 

1  7/ 

Da  v/ds  Chape/ 

166 

}Hilson's 

I6Z 

Bakers 

l£3 

Sign  board 

ISZ 

Buffa/o 

136 

Beotty's  Ford 

J  19 

36  Lincoln  County  Schools 

Equipment.  This  item  on  the  score-card  was  one  that  brought 
down  the  score  of  practically  every  building  in  the  count}'.  •  Very 
little  in  the  way  of  equipment  has  been  provided.  Any  plan  for  the 
reorganization  of  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County  will  of  necessity  carry 
recommendations  for  improved  equipment. 

Outside  Equipment.  One  of  tlie  main  items  of  the  outside  equip- 
ment is  a  sanitary  water  supply.  In  most  of  the  new  buildings  Delco 
systems  have  been  installed,  and  there  are  drinking  fountains  for 
the  children.  Thirty-one  per  cent  of  the  pupils  of  the  county  are 
going  to  schools  in  which  no.  provision  at  all  has  been  made  for  water. 
Twenty  out  of  the  forty-eight  buildings  have  absolutely  no  water  fa- 
cilities on  the  grounds. 

Toilets.  In  the  newer  buildings  that  have  been  built  adequate  and 
sanitary  toilet  facilities  have  been  provided.  In  a  few  of  the  other 
buildings  some  arrangement  has  been  made,  but  in  nineteen  of  the 
schools  to  which  26  per  cent  of  the  pupils  of  the  county  go,  abso- 
lutely no  provision  has  been  made  for  toilets. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  total  scores  of  the  school  buildings  for  the 
county  that  thirty-five  of  the  forty-eight  school  buildings  in  Lincoln 
County  scored  less  than  400,  and  that  nine  of  the  buildings  scored 
less  than  200.  Steps  should  be  taken  to  eliminate  these  buildings  just 
as  soon  as  possible.  The  reorganization  program,  which  will  be  dis- 
cussed later,  will  provide  for  the  abandonment  of  most  of  these 
schools. 


LiNCOiiN  County 


PLATE  V 


A UNATTRACTIVE,   UNINVITING,    IT^hYGIENIC,   UNWHOLESOME.       NOTICE    THE   UTTER 

LACK  OF  EQUIPMENT EVEN  USABLE  BLACKBOARDS. 


.       \ 


-ONLY   A  FEW  OF  THESE  OLD  DESKS   ARE  TO  BE  FOUND  IN   LINCOLN   COUNTY, 
BOYS   AND   GIRLS    HAVE   TO    SIT   ON   THESE  FOR    SIX   HOURS   A   DAY. 


BUT 


Lincoln  County 


PLATE  VI 


A — ""A  LITTLE  HOUSE  ON  A  LITTLE  GROUND.  WHERE  A  LITTLE  TEACHER,  AT  A  LITTLE 
SALARY    FOR    A    LITTLE    WHILE,    TEACHES    LITTLE    CHILDREN    LITTLE    THINGS." 


B TWENTY-SIX  PER  CENT   OF  THE   BOYS   AND  GIRLS 

IN  LINCOLN  COUNTY   ATTEND   SCHOOLS   WITH 

NO    TOILETS.       MANY    OTHERS    ATTEND 

SCHOOLS   WITH  TOILETS  LIKE  THIS. 


CHAPTER  VI 

DOES  ALL  THE  TAXABLE  PROPERTY  IN  LINCOLN  COUNTY 

SUPPORT  THE  EDUCATION  OF  EVERY  BOY  AND 

GIRL  IN  THE  COUNTY? 

The  School  Law  of  North  Carolina  and  the  Constitution  of  the 
State  provide  that  the  schools  of  the  State  shall  be  run  for  six  months 
in  each  year.  In  order  to  maintain  this  six  months  school  term 
the  county  is  made  the  agent  for  carrying  out  the  terms  of  the  Con- 
stitution and  the  law.  All  of  the  property  within  each  county  is  taxed 
at  a  uniform  rate  of  taxation  for  the  support  of  all  the  schools  of  the 
count}^  for  a  period  of  six  months.  This  six  months  term,  however, 
as  we  have  shown  above,  is  decidedly  inadequate,  and  the  schools  of 
the  county  should  run  for  at  least  a  period  of  eight  months. 

In  order  to  maintain  a  school  system  of  eight  months  there  are 
three  methods  that  may  be  adopted  by  the  county  to  provide  sufficient 
funds  to  provide  for  a  term  longer  than  the  constitutional  six  months. 

1.  Each  district  in  the  county  may  vote  a  local  tax,  the  proceeds 
of  which  are  used  within  the  district  itself. 

2.  Two  or  more  districts  may  form  a  special  taxing  district,  and 
thus  provide  a  larger  unit  of  taxation  than  the  district.  This 
unit  may  be  as  large  as  a  township,  or  may  embrace  two  or  more 
townships. 

3.  The  county  may  be  made  the  unit  of  taxation  and  administration. 

Each  one  of  these  methods  will  be  discussed  briefly  with  a  view 
to  ascertaining  whether  equality  of  educational  opportunity  can  be 
secured  by  any  one  of  the  methods. 

THE   DISTRICT   METHOD 

The  School  Law  has  provided  that  a  district  may  be  laid  off  and 
that  this  district  may  vote  a  local  tax  to  supplement  the  six  months 
school  term,  and  provide  other  necessary  essentials  for  the  schools. 
The  districts  in  Lincoln  County  vary  in  the  amount  of  taxable  prop- 
erty within  the  districts  from  $96,000  to  $4,934,000.  The  amount  of 
taxable  property  within  a  district,  however,  is  no  indication  of  the 
ability  of  that  district  to  support  education,  nor  the  needs  of  that  dis- 
trict for  educational  support.  It  will  be  necessary  for  us  to  divide 
the  valuation  of  property  within  a  district  by  the  number  of  pupils 
that  are  enrolled  in  the  schools  of  the  district.  This  will  give  us  a 
very  good  indication  of  the  ability  of  the  district  to  provide  education 
for  its  pupils,  for  it  will  indicate  the  amount  of  taxable  property  that 
the  district  has  for  the  support  of  the  education  of  each  pupil  in  the 
district. 


40 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


Another  very  good  indication  of  the  ability  of  the  district  to  sup- 
port education  will  be  the  amount  of  taxable  property  for  the  support 
of  each  teacher  that  it  is  necessary  for  the  district  to  employ.  Table 
XII  gives  this  valuation  per  pupil  enrolled  and  valuation  per  teacher 
for  each  of  the  local-tax  districts  in  Lincoln  County. 

TABLE  XII 

Valuation  Per  Pupil  Enkolled  and  Valuation  Per  Teacher  for  Each  of  the 
Local  Tax  Districts  of  Lincoln  County,  1922-23 


DISTRICT 


Rock  Springs 

Catawba  Springs 

Triangle 

McLeans 

Lowes  ville 

Asbury 

Iron 

Oak  Grove 

Love  MemoriaL. 

Grouse 

Daniels 

Howard's  Greek. 

Ridge 

Union 

North  Brook 

Lincolnton 


Valuation 


479,338 
386,293 
128,628 
142,. 554 
167,220 
600, 106 
158,029 
331,463 
458,222 
277,284 
378,444 
395,101 
96,763 
249,355 
349,106 
4,934,514 


Enrollment 
1922-23 


315 
151 
73 
52 
70 
221 
112 
109 
155 
182 
124 
200 
145 
163 
231 
849 


Valuation 
Per  Pupil 
Enrolled 


1,522 
2,558 
1 ,  762 
2,741 
2,389 
2,715 
1,410 
3,040 
2,956 
1,523 
3,052 
1,975 
667 
1,529 
1,511 
5,812 


Number 
Teachers 


Valuation 

Per 

Teacher 


53,259 
96,573 
64,314 

142,554 
83,610 

120,021 
52,676 

110,487 

152,740 
55,456 
94,611 
65,850 
24, 190 
49,871 
49,872 

170,155 


The  valuation  per  ]3upil  enrolled  varies  in  Lincoln  County  from 
$667  in  Ridge  Academy  District  to  $5,812  in  Lincolnton  District. 
That  is,  there  is  approximately  nine  times  the  amount  of  taxable  prop- 
erty behind  each  child  in  Lincolnton  District  as  there  is  behind  each 
child  in  Ridge  Academy  District.  Tf  the  districts  outside  of  the  city 
of  Lincolnton  are  considered,  it  is  found  that  Daniels  has  $3,052  worth 
of  taxable  property  for  each  pupil  enrolled.  This  means  that  there 
is  almost  five  times  the  amount  of  taxable  property  behind  each  child 
in  the  Daniels  District  a~s  there  is  behind  each  child  in  the  Ridge 
Academy  District. 

The  same  inequalities  exist  if  the  valuation  for  each  teacher  is  con- 
sidered. Lincolnton  has  $170,000  behind  every  teacher  in  their  dis- 
trict, while  Ridge  Academy  has  only  $24,000  for  each  teacher  em- 
ployed. Within  the  county  the  amount  of  property  behind  every 
teacher  varies  from  $24,000  in  the  Ridge  Academy  District  to  $153,000 
in  Love  Memorial  District. 

A  consideration  of  this  table  and  of  these  facts  can  bring  but  one 
conclusion — there  can  be  no  equity  of  educational  support  or  of 
educational  opportunity  if  the  district  plan  of  support  is  used. 


CouNTi'-wiDE  Plan  of  Oroanization 


41 


SPECIAL  TAXING  DISTRICT 

If  as  large  a  unit  as  a  township  is  taken  for  the  special  taxing  dis- 
trict, the  same  inequalities  exist  that  were  found  under  the  district 
plan.  Four  of  the  townships  in  Lincoln  County  have  approximately 
the  same  valuation  for  each  child  enrolled  in  the  schools,  but  the  fifth 
township  has  more  than  twice  the  valuation  for  each  child  that  is 
found  in  any  other  township  in  the  county.  The  average  valuation 
for  each  child  in  the  entire  county  is  $3,124.70,  and  this  should  be  the 
valuation  that  should  support  the  education  of  every  child  in  Lin- 
coln County. 

If  the  valuation  per  teacher  is  considered,  the  same  inequalities 
exist.  Lincolnton  Township  has  $177,000  worth  of  taxable  property 
to  support  each  teacher  teaching  within  the  township,  while  North 
Brook  Township  has  only  $62,959.  The  inequality  in  the  valuation 
in  each  township  for  each  pupil  enrolled  and  for  each  teacher  em- 
ployed is  shown  on  Table  XIII  and  Figure  9.  Equality  of  educa- 
tional support  and  of  educational  opportunity  cannot  be  obtained 
if  the  special  taxing  district  is  used. 

TABLE  XIII 

Valuation  Per  Pupil  Enrolled  and  Valuation  Per  Teacher  for  Each  of  the 
Townships  of  Lincoln  County,  1922-23 


TOWNSHIP 

Valuation 

Enrollment 

Valuation 
Per  Pupil 
Enrolled 

Teachers 

Valuation 
for  each 
Teacher 

$     1,448,072 
2,029,516 
9,208,082 
1,399,391 
1,488,458 
15,573,519 

766 

1,025 

1,721* 

746 

726 

4,984 

$      1,866.07 
1,980.01 
5,350.43 
1,875.86 
2,050.22 
3,124.70 

23 
30 
52* 
20 
18 
143 

S      62  959  65 

Howard's  Creek 

Lincolnton 

Ironton 

67,650.53 
177,078.50 
69,969.55 
82,692.11 
108  905  1'> 

*Lincolnton  included 


42 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


Cou^^TY-wiDE  Plan  of  Organization  43 

THE   COUNTY  AS   THE   UNIT 

In  order  to  give  everj^  boy  and  girl  in  Lincoln  County  a  standard 
elementary  education  and  an  accredited  high  school  and  comfortable, 
sanitarj"  buildings,  it  will  be  necessary  for  the  County  as  a  whole 
to  assume  this  obligation.  Every  child  in  Lincoln  County,  no  matter 
in  what  part  of  the  county  he  lives,  should  be  given  these  educational 
advantages,  and  all  of  the  property  of  Lincoln  County  should  support 
the  education  of  every  boy  and  girl  within  the  county.  It  is  unjust 
and  unfair  to  penalize  a  boy  or  girl  within  the  county  and  deny  him 
educational  opportunities  because  he  happens  to  live  in  a  Aveaker  dis- 
trict. It  is  unjust  and  unfair  to  insist  that  a  citizen  of  Lincoln 
County  shall  pay  an  exceedingly  heavy  rate  of  taxation  to  pro- 
vide educational  opportunities  for  his  boys  and  girls,  while  another 
citizen  of  Lincoln  County  that  happens  to  live  in  a  more  favored  dis- 
trict pays  a  very  low  rate  of  taxes  to  provide  the  same  educational 
opportunities  for  his  children.  There  should  be  the  same  rate  of 
taxes  over  the  entire  county,  and  every  boy  and  girl  within  the  county 
should  be  provided  with  adequate  educational  opportunities. 

This  can  only  be  done  when  the  county  is  made  the  unit  of  taxation 
and  administration  and  the  education  of  every  boy  and  girl  within 
the  county  supported  by  the  taxable  wealth  of  the  county  as  a  whole. 


PART  II 

HOW  CAN  LINCOLN  COUNTY  MEET  ITS  OBLIGATION 
TO  THE  BOYS  AND  GIRLS? 

CHAPTER  VII 

HOW  CAN  LINCOLN  COUNTY  PROVIDE  EVERY  BOY   AND 

GIRL   IN   THE   COUNTY   WITH   A   STANDARD 

ELEMENTARY  EDUCATION? 

There  are  too  many  one-  and  two-teacher  schools  in  Lincoln  County 
at  present  for  the  boys  and  girls  to  have  the  advantage  of  standard 
elementary  education.  The  inefficiency  of  these  schools  has  been 
shown  by  this  study.  If  Lincoln  County  is  to  provide  a  standard  ele- 
mentary education  for  all  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  county,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  select  certain  centers  and  organize  elementary  schools 
in  these  centers. 

A  very  careful  study  has  been  made  in  regard  to  the  location  of  the 
elementary  centers  for  Lincoln  County.  The  census,  enrollment,  and 
average  daily  attendance  for  all  the  schools  in  the  county  for  the  past 
ten  years  have  been  studied.  It  is  essential  that  the  elementary  school 
be  located  in  a  center  that  is  large  enough  to  have  a  stable,  perma- 
neaat  school  population  and  not  be  affected  or  influenced  by  the  mov- 
ing of  the  patrons  each  year. 

In  addition  to  a  careful  study  of  each  one  of  the  districts  in  the 
county,  the  following  principles  were  adopted  for  the  location  of  the 
elementary  schools : 
1.     The  school  should  he  large  enough  to  assure  educational  efficiency. 

There  are  many  factors  that  contribute  toward  making  a  school  ef- 
ficient. The  preparation  of  the  teachers,  the  organization  of  the  school, 
the  length  of  term,  and  the  equipment  all  play  an  important  part  in 
making  the  elementary  school  efficient.  This  efficiency  is  not  due  to 
any  one  of  these  factors  alone.  We  could  not  have  an  efficient  school 
if  we  provided  a  well  trained  teacher,  but  only  provided  a  six  months 
term.  We.  could  not  have  an  efficient  school  if  we  provided  a  well 
trained  teacher  and  at  the  same  time  gave  her  so  many  grades  to  teach, 
or  so  many  pupils  to  teach,  that  it  was  impossible  for  her  to  get  good 
educational  results. 

Our  schools  should  at  least  have  well  trained  teachers,  an  eight 
months  term,  and  good  educational  equipment.  It  is  very  difficult 
to  secure  and  provide  these  factors  in  the  small  elementary  schools 
as  they  are  organized  at  present  in  Lincoln  County.  In  addition  to 
the  good  teacher,  the  longer  term  and  the  equipment,  our  schools 
should  at  least  be  organized  as  follows : 

a.  Each  teacher  should  teach  only  one  grade. 

The  best  educational  results  have  been  obtained  in  schools  which 


County-wide  Plan  of  Oe«anization  45 

were  so  organized  that  each  teacher  had  only  one  grade.  This  allows 
sufficient  time  for  recitations,  for  supervised  study,  and  for  the  neces- 
sary- individual  attention  to  the  pupils.  The  schools  of  Lincoln 
County  need  this  better  type  of  organization. 

It  is  essential  that  the  teachers  teaching  first-grade  work  teach  only 
one  grade.  A  study  of  Table  VII,  page  19,  shows  the  exceedingly 
large  number  of  boys  and  girls  in  the  first  grades  of  Lincoln  County. 
Since  1912-13  there  has  been  practically  twice  the  number  of  boys  and 
girls  in  the  first  grade  as  in  the  second.  With  an  adequate  term 
and  a  competent  teacher  teaching  only  one  grade,  these  boys  and  girls 
will  progress  normally  through  the  grades,  and  very  soon  there  will 
be  an  almost  even  distribution  in  each  of  the  elementary  grades. 

Most  of  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County  luider  the  proposed  plan 
will  have  a  teacher  for  each  of  the  elementary  grades.  The  centers 
that  have  been  selected  for  elementary  schools  will  provide  within 
a  few  years  enough  pupils  so  that  all  of  the  schools  in  the  county  will 
reach  this  standard.  It  would  be  too  expensive  to  put  this  organiza- 
tion of  one  teacher  to  each  grade  into  effect  at  once ;  but  even  now  the 
board  should  not  allow  a  teacher  to  teach  more  than  two  grades. 

With  the  better  distribution  of  the  pupils  in  the  elementary  grades 
that  will  follow  the  proposed  organization,  it  will  only  be  a  few 
years  before  all  of  the  schools  of  the  county  will  be  so  organized  as 
to  have  one  teacher  for  each  grade. 

b.  No  ieacher  should  he  required  to  teach   more  than  an  average 
daily  attendance  of  thirty-five  pupils. 

In  the  standard  above  we  have  provided  that  no  teacher  shall  be 
overcrowded  and  handicapped  with  too  many  recitations  and  grades. 
It  is  possible  to  so  overcrowd  a  teacher  with  pupils  that  she  is  unable 
to  do  efficient  work,  or  to  obtain  satisfactory  educational  results.  If 
the  schools  are  so  organized  that  a  teacher  shall  have  only  one  grade, 
it  will  be  necessary  to  also  provide  that  this  teacher  must  not  have 
to  exceed  thirty-five  pupils  in  average  daily  attendance. 

c.  There  should  he  at  least  six  grades  in  each  elementary  unit. 
Lender  the  proposed  organization  for  Lincoln   County  there   are 

no  elementary  school  units  teaching  only  two  or  three  grades.  It  is 
believed  that  better  educational  results  can  be  secured  if  the  six  ele- 
mentary grades  are  in  one  building  rather  than  having  small  primary 
schools  in  other  localities.  Two  of  the  schools  proposed  for  Lincoln 
County  will  be  at  present  smaller  units,  but  there  is  eve»y  reason  to 
believe  that  these  schools  will  be  able  to  provide  the  six  full  grades 
in  a  verj  short  while. 

2.     Educational  essentials  must  not  he  sacrificed  for  economy,  hut  edu- 
cational efficiency  must  he  ohtained  in  the  most  economical  way. 
The  boys  and  girls  must  not  be  denied  anything  that  is  essential  to 
their   educational   dcA^elopment,   and   at   the   same   time   the   schools 


46  Lincoln  County  Schools 

should  be  so  organised  as  to  secure  the  best  educational  results  in  the 
most  economical  way.  It  is  false  economy  to  attempt  to  organize 
the  schools  of  Lincoln  County  in  such  a  manner  that  the  elementary 
schools  do  not  meet  the  minimum  requirements  as  just  stated  above. 
There  should  be  absolutely  no  doubt  in  the  minds  of  the  people  of 
Lincoln  County  in  regard  to  the  necessity  of  meeting  these  require- 
ments for  standard  elementary  education. 

3.     Requirements  for  standard  elementary  schools  should  be  met  with 
as  little  transportation  as  possible. 

This  does  not  mean  in  any  sense  that  transportation  is  not  satis- 
factory. Transportation  is  essential  in  order  to  develop  standard 
rural  schools.  It  does  mean,  however,  that  educational  efficiency 
should  be  secured  with  as  little  transportation  as  possible.  Trans- 
portation is  expensive,  and  if  the  requirements  are  met  for  standard 
elementary  schools  in  every  case,  it  would  be  wise  for  the  count}' 
board  of  education  to  use  the  money  that  would  ordinarly  be  used 
for  additional  transportation  for  other  purposes. 

In  the  proposed  scheme  for  the  reorganization  of  the  elementary 
schools  of  Lincoln  County,  it  is  proposed  that  the  elementary  schools 
teach  six  grades,  and  that  the  seventh  grade  of  the  elementary  school 
be  taught  in  either  the  intermediate  schools  or  the  standard  high 
schools.  The  seventh  grade  is  a  very  critical  year  in  the  school  life 
of  a  boy  or  girl.  In  this  year  they  complete  their  elementarj'  school 
work  and  complete  their  full  preparation  for  high  school.  It  is  im- 
portant that  everything  be  done  to  assure  the  very  highest  efficiency 
in  this  important  year.  For  this  reason  it  is  proposed  that  the  seventh 
grade  be  taught  in  the  intermediate  and  standard  high  schools  rather 
than  in  each  one  of  the  elementary  schools.  This  organization  will 
result  in  better  educational  opportunity  for  the  seventh  grade  hoys 
and  girls,  for  the  following  reasons : 

First.  The  teachers  will  be  better  prepared  in  each  of  the  subjects 
that  they  teach.  This  will  be  possible  because  there  will  be  a  teacher 
who  makes  a  specialty  of  teaching  a  certain  subject  or  subjects,  and 
can  specialize  in  the  teaching  of  this  particular  work.  There  would  be 
such  a  small  number  of  seventh-grade  pupils  at  each  of  the  elementary 
centers  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  have  the  special  teachers  pre- 
paring the  boys  and  girls  in  special  subjects. 

Second.  By  this  departmental  method  the  pupils  would  become 
accustomed  to  the  high  school  method  of  teaching.  In  the  elementary 
schools  usuallj*  a  teacher  teaches  all  of  the  subjects  that  are  taught  in 
one  grade.  In  high  school  the  pupil  may  have  a  different  teacher 
for  each  one  of  the  subjects.  This  is  quite  a  change  to  the  pupil, 
although  it  yields  better  results.  It  will  be  quite  an  advantage  to  the 
seventh-grade  pupil  to  accustom  himself  to  this  type  of  organization 


CoujN'ty-wide  Plan  of  Organization  47 

in  the  seventh  year  rather  than  waiting  until  he  enters  the  high 
school  grades. 

Third.  With  more  seventh  grade  pupils  brought  to  one  central 
school  there  will  be  more  opportunity  for  special  classes  for  helping 
those  who  are  behind  with  their  work,  and  for  giving  more  individual 
help  to  the  pupils. 

Fourth,  A  larger  per  cent  of  the  boys  and  girls  will  at- 
tend high  school  if  the  seventh  grade  is  in  the  same  unit  with  the 
high  school.  There  might  be  a  tendency  on  the  part  of  a  number 
of  boys  and  girls  to  think  that  they  had  completed  their  schooling  if 
they  completed  the  elementary  school  and  were  not  brought  in  very 
close  touch  and  contact  with  the  high  school ;  but  if  in  the  seventh 
year  thej^  are  thrown  in  daily  touch  with  the  high  school  and  are  con- 
stantly impressed  with  the  fact  that  they  have  not  completed  the 
public  school,  they  will  be  more  apt  to  enter  high  school  than  they 
otherwise  would. 

In  the  light  of  the  above  study,  and  guided  by  the  above  principles, 
it  is  recommended  that  the  elementary  schools  of  Lincoln  County  be 
located  at  the  following  points.  The  number  of  pupils  and  teachers 
have  been  determined  by  a  very  careful  study  of  the  enrollment  in 
the  public  schools  of  Lincoln  County  for  the  school  year  1922-23,  and 
it  is  almost  certain  that  the  enrollment  in  the  new  type  of  school  will 
be  somewhat  larger  than  this  enrollment  given  below.  Following 
the  description  given  below  is  a  map  (Figure  10)  showing  the  location 
of  each  one  of  the  elementary  schools. 

ELEMEJfTARY  SCHOOLS 

Grades   1-6 
NORTH  NORTH  BROOK: 

LocAXiOK — On  main  highway  near  Hull's  Crossroad. 

Site — At  least  10  acres. 

BuiLDiiVG — New  building,  Type  I-B. 

Number  Pupils — 174. 

Teachers — 5. 

Trucks — Use  of  high  school  truck  from  Taluca  by  Laurel  Hill  to  school. 

CENTRAL  NORTH  BROOK: 

LdCATiox — On  main  highway  near  Dave  Beam's  Store,  where  County  pro- 
posed hard  surface  road  meets  main  Cherryville-Morganton 
road. 

Site — At  least  10  acres. 

Building — New  building.  Type  I-B. 

Number  Fi^pils — 207. 

Teachers — 6. 

Trucks — None. 

SOUTH  NORTH  BROOK: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Present  building  adequate.     Heat  to  be  installed. 

Number  Pupils — 300. 


48  Lincoln  County  Schools 

Teachers — Elementary  6. 
Trucks — 3. 

RIDGE  ACADEMY: 

Location — Changed  to  Guess'  Crossroad. 

Site — At  least  10  acres. 

Building — New  building,  Type  I-A. 

Number  Pupils — 147. 

Teachers — 4. 

Trucks — None. 

UNION: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Heating,  water  and  toilet  facilities  to  be  installed. 

Number  Pupils — Elementary,  170. 

Teachers — 5. 

Trucks — 2. 

DANIELS: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Remodeled,  heat,  water  and  toilet  facilities  Installed. 

Number  Pupils — 130. 

Teachers — 4. 

Trucks- — 1. 

HOWARD'S  CREEK: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Heat  to  be  installed  in  present  building. 

Number  Pupils — 204. 

Teachers — 6. 

Trucks — 3. 

CROUSE: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — It  will  be  necessary  to  purchase  enough  additional  land  to  bring 

the  present  site  up  to  ten  acres. 
Building — New  building.  Type  I-B. 
Number  Pupils — 156. 

Teachers — 5.  .      . 

Trucks — None. 

OAK  GROVE: 

Location — Present  location. 
Site^ — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Present  build-ing  satisfactory.     Jacketed   stoves. 
Number  Pupils — 87. 
Teachers — 3. 
Trucks^ — ^None. 
LOVE  MEMORIAL: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Present  building.     Jacketed  stoves  installed  in  each  room. 

Number  Pupils — 141. 

Teachers — 4. 

Trucks — None. 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization  49 

LABORATORY: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Heat  installed  in  present  building. 

Number  Fupils^ — 154. 

Teachers^ — 4. 

Trucks — None.  >- 

LONG  SHOALS-SOUTHSIDE: 

Location — On  main  road  midway  between  the  two  present  schools. 

Site — At  least  10  acres. 

Building — New  building,  Type  I-B. 

Number  Pupils — 208. 

Teachers — 6. 

Trucks — None. 
ASBURY: 

Location — It  is  recommended  that  the  location  be  moved  as  near  as  pos- 
sible to  the  fork  of  the  road  where  the  road  from  Denver 
meets  the  road  leading  to  the  present  school.  The  building 
should  be  as  near  this  point  as  possible  to  secure  an  ade- 
quate site. 

Site — Not  less  than  10,  preferably  15  acres. 

Building — New  building,  Type  II. 

Number  Pupils — Elementary,  464. 

Teachers — 12. 

Trucks — 4. 
IRON  STATION: 

Location — As  near  Iron  Station  as  possible. 

Site — 10  acres. 

Building — New  building.  Type  I-B. 

Number  Pupils — 150. 

Teachers — 5. 

Trucks — One  for  use  of  both  elementary  and  high  school. 
ROCK  SPRINGS   CONSOLIDATED: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — New  building.  Type  III. 

Number  Pupils — Elementary,  250. 

Teachers — 7. 

Trucks — Elementary  and  high  school,  6. 
CATAWBA  SPRINGS: 

Location — Present  location. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Heat  to  be  installed  in  present  building. 

Number  Pupils — 153. 

Teachers — 5. 

Trucks — 1. 
HAGER'S: 

Location — In  the  southern  part  of  Catawba  Springs  Township  at  Hager's 
Crossroad  near  the  point  where  the  road  from  McLean  School 
meets  the  Lowesville-Denver  road. 

Building — New  building,  Type  I-A. 

Number   Pupils — Approximately,    120. 

Teachers — 3. 

Trucks — No  additional  trucks  for  elementary  school.  High  school 
trucks  used  as  far  as  the  school. 


50  Lincoln  County  Schools 

These  proposed  centers  will  adequately  provide  a  standard  ele- 
menary  education  for  all  the  boys  and  girls  in  Lincoln  County  with 
the  two  following-  exceptions.  It  will  be  necessary  for  the  board  of 
education  to  follow  the  proposed  plan  for  the  districts  of  Pine  Grove 
and  Hickory  G-rove  and  the  present  district  of  Triangle.  It  should 
only  be  used  as  a  tem-perary  measure  and  abandoned  as  soon  as  more 
definite  information  can  be  secured. 

1.  PINE  GROVE  AND  HICKORY  GROVE. 

These  two  schools  are  on  the  main  State  highway  from  Newton  to 
Lincolnton.  The  highway  is  in  process  of  being  hard  surfaced.  It  is 
impossible  to  definitely  estimate  the  increase  in  school  population  on 
this  main  highway.  It  is  suggested  that  the  county  board  maintain 
the  present  schools,  both  of  which  are  in  comfortable  buildings,  for  at 
least  three  years,  until  future  developments  point  a  way  to  a  different 
course. 

2.  TRIANGLE. 

The  situation  at  Triangle,  and  the  territory  east  of  Triangle  to 
the  Catawba  RiA^er,  presents  a  very  difficult  problem.  The  county 
board  should  temporarily  maintain  a  school  at  Triangle.  If  the 
county  provides  better  road  facilities  for  the  territory  east  of  Triangle, 
it  is  possible  that  it  will  be  necessary  to  place  an  elementary  school 
at  this  point.  It  is  difficult  to  say  just  how  this  situation  will  grow  in 
the  next  few  years.  A  light,  horse-drawn  transportation  bus  could 
be  used  in  this  district  to  very  good  advantage,  for  the  distance  is  very 
short  and  the  road  only  fair. 

Teachers.  One  of  the  most  urgent  needs  of  Lincoln  County  is  that 
the  standard  of  the  elementary  teachers  be  raised.  This  cannot  be 
done  all  at  once,  but  the  board  of  education  should  attempt  to  em- 
ploy teachers  holding  higher  grade  certificates,  and  beginning  with 
the  next  school  term  should  not  employ  in  the  white  schools  of  Lincoln 
County  any  teacher  that  does  not  hold  at  least  an  Elementary  B  State 
Certificate. 

Term.  As  soon  as  possible  the  term  for  each  school  in  the  county 
should  be  raised  to  at  least  eight  months.  It  is  suggested  that  instead 
of  raising  the  term  in  most  of  the  districts  from  six  to  eight  months, 
'  that  the  term  be  raised  some  each  year  until  the  term  of  eight  months 
is  reached.  This  will  give  the  patrons  of  the  school  a  chance  to  adjust 
themselves  to  a  longer  length  of  term,  and  will  work  no  hardships  on 
any  one. 

Supervision.  Recommendations  affecting  the  elementary  schools 
will  also  be  found  in  the  recommendations  made  for  the  organization 
of  the  count V  which  are  given  a  little  later. 


LINCOLN    COUNTY     NORTH     CAROLINA 


FIGURL  10 


O 


ol 


^ 


IRON  ST/tTWN  \ 


CHAPTER  VIII 

HOW  CAN  LINCOLN  COUNTY  PROVIDE  EVERY  BOY   AND 

GIRL  WITH  AN  ACCREDITED  HIGH  SCHOOL 

EDUCATION? 

In  providing  high  school  instruction  for  every  boy  and  girl  in 
Lincoln  County,  the  county  board  of  education  must  decide  as  to 
whether  they  will  offer  this  instruction  in  small  high  schools  with  few 
teachers,  few  pupils  and  few  courses,  or  in  a  larger  type  high  school 
adequately  equipped,  with  a  large  number  of  pupils  and  sufficient 
number  of  teachers  to  offer  a  large  variety  of  courses.  It  is  strongly 
reoommended  that  the  Board  adopt  the  larger  type  of  school  as  the 
high  school  program  in  Lincoln  County. 

Educational  Opportunity.  The  modern  high  school  must  offer  a 
sufficient  number  of  courses  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  pupils  it  is  de- 
siring to  serve.  In  order  to  give  these  courses  on  an  economical  basis, 
the  high  school  must  have  a  rather  large  number  of  pupils.  Some  of 
the  boys  and  girls  that  attend  high  school  will  upon  graduation  at- 
tend college.  Some  of  the  boys  and  girls  upon  graduation  will  be  re- 
quired to  engage  in  some  industry  or  occupation.  It  is  the  duty  of 
the  high  school  to  see  that  the  pupils  in  each  of  these  groups  are  fully 
equipped  for  their  future  tasks. 

All  of  the  high  schools  in  Lincoln  County  should  offer  vocational 
courses,  especially  in  Agriculture  and  Home  Economics.  These  studies 
have  long  since  proven  their  value,  and  have  become  an  essential 
part  of  the  educational  opportunities  offered  in  rural  high  schools. 
The  Division  of  Vocational  Education  sayjs  that  it  is  almost  impossible 
to  secure  enough  pupils  to  justify  having  the  vocational  subjects 
taught,  unless  the  total  enrollment  in  the  high  school  is  as  much  as 
one  hundred. 

The  larger  type  high  school  is  able  to  secure,  both  principals  and 
teachers,  the  better  prepared  and  more  experienced  teachers.  It  is 
possible  to  have  a  much  better  organization  of  classes,  much  better 
equipment,  and  usually  better  living  conditions  in  the  larger  type 
school ;  and  this  with  other  reasons  makes  it  much  easier  for  the  larger 
type  of  school  to  secure  the  choice  teachers  for  their  subjects. 

An  essential  part  of  high  school  education  today  is  the  extra  curri- 
cula activities — those  activities  of  a  school  that  are  carried  on  that  are 
extra  or  beyond  the  regular  program  of  work.  These  extra  curricula 
activities  may  include  athletics,  literary  and  debating  society  work, 
and  all  forms  of  student  activity.  The  small  type  high  school  offers 
absolutely  no  facilities  for  these  essential  things,  whereas  in  the  larger 
type  high  school  they  play  a  most  important  and  essential  part  in  the 
development  of  the  student. 


52  Lincoln  County  Schools 

Economy.  The  small  type  high  school  must  either  offer  a  very 
meager  program  of  studies  or  have  a  very  high  per  pupil  cost  for  in- 
struction. The  high  school  instruction  has  always  been  the  most  ex- 
pensive part  of  the  educational  system.  The  classes  are  smaller,  the 
teachers  as  a  rule  better  paid,  and  other  reasons  have  entered  in  to 
increase  the  per  pupil  cost  of  high  school  instruction.  It  is  apparent 
that  the  cost  of  instruction,  if  anything  like  the  same  opportunities 
are  offered,  would  be  prohibitive  in  the  smaller  type  school  as  com- 
pared with  the  larger  type. 

Community  Relations.  It  is  impossible  to  express  in  detail  the  in- 
fluence upon  a  community  of  a  larger  type  high  school.  With  the  in- 
creased enrollment,  and  with  the  introduction  of  the  vocational  sub- 
jects, will  come  the  full  time  principal  and  full-time  agriculture 
teacher.  These  workers  will  live  in  the  community  for  the  full  twelve 
months  in  the  year  and  become  an  integral  part  of  its  progress  and 
development.  It  is  hardly  possible  to  estimate  the  value  of  having 
the  teacher  of  agriculture  in  the  community  for  the  entire  year. 

Future  Opportunity  of  Pupils.  From  a  very  practical  standpoint 
it  is  essential  that  the  larger  type  high  school  be  developed  in  Lincoln 
County.  The  State  institutions  of  higher  learning  have  had  such  an 
enormous  increase  in  enrollment  that  it  has  been  necessary  for  them 
to  require  graduation  from  an  accredited  high  school  for'  entrance. 
Several  boys  and  girls  in  Lincoln  County  attempted  to  enter  these 
institutions  last  year  and  found  that  their  places  were  filled  by  other 
boys  and  girls  who  had  the  advantages  of  accredited  high  schools. 

For  that  group  of  boys  and  girls  who  cannot  go  to  college,  the 
larger  type  of  high  school  is  the  onl^'  preparation  that  they  will  get 
for  their  future  vocation.  If  these  boys  and  girls  are  required  to  at- 
tend high  schools  that  offer  only  a  minimum  of  subjects,  with  no  vo- 
cational courses,  they  will  be  forced  to  leave  school  with  no  prepara- 
tion beyond  their  academic  training  for  the  work  they  are  going  to  do 
in  the  future. 

The  high  school  program  as  outlined  below  provided  for  three  large 
senior  high  schools  in  Lincoln  County ;  one  in  the  western  part  of  the 
county,  one  in  the  central,  and  one  in  the  eastern  part.  These  three 
high  schools  will  be  accessible  to  every  boy  and  girl  in  Lincoln  County. 
Each  of  these  three  high  schools  will  easily  meet  the  State  require- 
ments and  become  accredited.  They  will  offer  a  broad  course  of  study 
that  will  equip  the  boys  and  girls  of  Lincoln  County  for  their  future 
work.  They  will  be  assured  of  sufficient  financial  support  and  suf- 
ficient number  of  pupils  to  always  remain  accredited  high  schools. 

The  standards  for  high  schools  in  North  Carolina  have  been  con- 
stantly increasing,  and  we  have  every  reason  to  believe  that  they  will 
keep  on  increasing  every  few  years.  The  small  type  high  school  will 
always  have  a  struggle  to  maintain  a  sufficient  number  of  pupils  and 
teachers  to  remain  on  the  accredited  list.     With  the  high  school  pro- 


CouKTY-wiDE  Plan  of  Organization  53 

gram  as  proposed,  the  future  of  the  high  schools  of  Lincoln  County  is 
assured. 

It  is  recommended  that  two  schools  in  the  county  teach  intermediate 
high  school  work,  or  through  the  ninth  grade.  These  schools  are 
North  Brook  Consolidated  and  Asbury.  The  pupils  that  finish  the 
courses  offered  in  these  two  schools  will  secure  their  last  two  years 
of  high  school  in  one  of  the  three  senior  high  schools  in  the  county. 

The  location,  site,  building,  number  of  pupils,  number  of  teachers, 
and  number  of  trucks  for  the  proposed  high  schools  is  herewith  given. 
Immediately  after  the  description  a  map  locating  the  high  schools  of 
the  county  is  shown. 

INTERMEDIATE    HIGH    SCHOOLS 

Grades  7,  8,  9 
SOUTH  NORTH  BROOK: 

Location — Present. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — Present  building. 

Number  Pupils — 75. 

Teachers — 3. 

Trucks — With  elementary  school,  3. 
ASBURY: 

Location — See   elementary  school. 

Site — See  elementary  school. 

Building — See  elementary  school. 

Number  Pltils — 95. 

Teachers — 3. 

Trucks — 

SENIOR  HIGH  SCHOOLS 
Grades  7,  8,  9,  10,  11 
WEST  LINCOLN: 

Location — At  or  near  the  point  where  the  road  from  Ridge  Academy 
joins  the  main  road  from  Lincolnton  to  Dave  Bean's  Store, 
east  of  Indian  Creek. 

Site — ^Not  less  than  15  acres. 

Building — New  Type  IV. 

Number  Pupils — 260,  without  7th  grade. 

Teachers — 10. 

Trucks — 6. 
CENTRAL  LINCOLN: 

Location — Lincolnton. 

Site — Present. 

Building — Present  building  adequate. 

Number  Pupils — 350. 

Teachers — 14. 

Trucks — 5. 
EAST  LINCOLN: 

Location — Denver. 

Site — Present  site  adequate. 

Building — New  Type  III. 

Number  Pupils — 150. 

Teachers — 6. 

Trucks — With  elementary,  6. 


CHAPTER  IX 

HOW  CAN  LINCOLN  COUNTY  PROVIDE  A  COMFORTABLE, 

SANITARY  BUILDING  FOR  EVERY  BOY  AND 

GIRL  IN  THE  COUNTY? 

It  will  require  only  ten  new  buildings  for  Lincoln  County  to  carry 
out  the  plan  of  reorganization  proposed  for  both  elementary  and  high 
schools.  Seven  of  these  buildings  will  be  elementary  schools  ;>  one  will 
be  elementary  and  senior  high  school  combined ;  one  will  be  elementary 
and  intermediate  high  school  combined ;  and  one  will  be  for  high 
school  alone. 

In  addition  to  the  ten  new  buildings,  it  will  be  necessary  to  provide 
service  equipment  for  several  of  the  buildings  now  in  use.  Some  of 
the  buildings  need  adequate  heating  facilities ;  others  must  be  supplied 
with  water  and  toilet  facilities.  With  a  reasonable  expenditure  the 
county  can  make  these  buildings  both  comfortable  and  sanitary. 

It  will  require  too  much  space  here  to  discuss  each  building  in 
detail,  with  the  plans  and  requirements.  The  plans  proposed  will  be 
submitted  to  the  county  board  of  education  for  their  approval.  For 
reference  here  the  buildings  are  divided  into  four  types,  and  these 
types  are  herewith  described. 

TYPES  OF  BUILDINGS 

TYPE    I-A 

By  this  type  of  building  is  meant  a  building  for  the  elementary 
school  only,  built  with  sufficient  number  of  standard  elementary 
classrooms,  provision  for  auditorium  or  assembly  room,  principal's 
office  and  library.  This  building  should  be  equipped  with  adequate 
heating  facilities,  adequate  and  sanitary  water  and  toilet '  facilities, 
together  with  an  artificial  lighting  system.  This  type  of  building  to 
be  frame. 

TYPE  I-B 

Type  I-B  same  as  Type  I-A,  except  made  of  brick. 

TYPE   II 

Of  brick  construction  for  elementary  and  intermediate  grades. 
This  building  should  contain  sufficient  number  of  elementary  school 
classrooms,  sufficient  number  of  classrooms  and  special  rooms  for  the 
intermediate  high  school  grades,  consisting  of  eighth  and  ninth  grades, 
auditorium,  principal's  office,  and  library.  It  should  be  provided 
with  adequate  heating  f  acilites,  adequate  and  sanitary  water  and  toilet 
facilities,  and  provision  for  artificial  lighting. 

TYPE  III 

Of  brick  construction  for  elementary  grades  and  high  school.    This 


f< 

LINCOLN     COUNTY     TSfORTH      CAROLINA 

FIGURE 

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t 

County-wide  Plan  of  Organization  55 

building  should  contain  the  necessary  number  of  elementary  class- 
rooms, provision  for  high  school  classrooms,  laboratories,  special 
rooms,  vocational  rooms,  auditorium,  principal's  office,  and  library. 
It  should  have  adequate  heating  facilities,  adequate  and  sanitary 
water  and  toilet  facilities,  and  provision  for  artificial  lighting. 

TYPE  IV 

Of  brick  construction  for  high  school  grades  only.  This  building 
should  contain  adequate  classrooms,  laboratories,  special  rooms,  voca- 
tional rooms  for  the  teaching  of  the  high  school  subjects,  auditorium, 
principal's  office,  and  library.  It  should  also,  have  adequate  heating 
facilities  and  adequate  and  sanitary  water  and  toilet  facilities,  and 
provision  for  artificial  lighting. 

The  proposed  building  program  for  the  county  is  as  follows : 

jVew  buildings 

Type  I-A:    Ridge  Academy. 

Hager's. 
Type  I-B:    North  North  Brook. 

Central  North  Brook. 

Grouse. 

Long  Shoals-Southside. 

Iron  Station. 
Type  II:    Asbury. 
Type  III:    Rock  Springs. 
Type  IV:    "West  Lincoln. 

SEKTICE   EQUIPMENT  INSTALLED 

South  North  Brook:    Heating  plant. 

Union:    Heating  plant,  water  and  toilet  facilities. 

Daniel:     Building  remodeled,  heating  plant,  water  and  toilet  facilities. 

Howard's  Creek:    Heating  plant. 

Oak  Grove:    Heating  facilities. 

Love  Memorial:    Heating  facilities. 

Laboratory:    Heating  plant,  water  and  toilet  facilities. 

Catawba  Springs:    Heating  plant. 

COSTS 

2  Buildings  Type  I-A $  20,000.00 

5  Buildings  Type  I-B 125,000.00 

1  Building  Type  II 50,000.00 

1  Building  Type  III 60,000.00 

1  Building  Type  IV 60,000.00 

Equipment  for  new  buildings 25,000.00 

*Installing  service  systems  as  above 30,000.00 

Total  $370,000.00 

*A  detailed  schedule  of  this  work  has  been  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
county  board  of  education. 


56  Lincoln  County  Schools 

EECOMMENDATIOJVS   FOR  BUILDIIVGJ  PROGRAM 

It  is  recommended : 

1.  That  the  comity  board  of  education  petition  the  county  board  of 
commissioners  to  call  a  special  election  under  Article  22  of  the  Public 
School  Law  of  North  Carolina  to  ascertain  the  will  of  the  people  as  to 
whether  there  should  be  issued  county  bonds  in  the  sum  of  $300,000 
for  the  purpose  of  building  and  equipping  the  schoolhouses  suggested 
above. 

2.  That  the  county  board  of  education  petition  the  State  Board 
of  Education  for  a  loan  of  $100,000  from  the  Special  Building  Fund. 

3.  That  the  balance  of  $30,000  which  is  asked  for  be  used  for  the 
purchase  of  school  trucks,  the  need  of  which  will  be  shown  later. 

4.  That  the  county  board  of  education  assume  the  payment  of  the 
outstanding  bonds  and  the  outstanding  indebtedness  to  the  State 
Special  Building  Fund  for  all  the  districts  in  the  county.  These 
outstanding  bonds  and  indebtedness  amount  to  $247,000. 

This  means  that  the  entire  building  program  can  be  completed, 
every  boy  and  girl  in  the  county  provided  with  a  comfortable,  sanitary 
school  building,  and  that  the  entire  county  will  only  have  $647,000  of 
outstanding  indebtedness  for  all  of  the  school  buildings  in  the  county. 

Lincoln  County  can  well  afford  the  building  program  as  here  pro- 
posed. This  will  mean  that  the  heavy  annual  expenditures  for  build- 
ings that  have  been  made  in  the  past  few  years  will  be  replaced  by 
payments  on  the  funds  invested  in  school  buildings.  Last  year  the 
county  board  of  education  spent  the  sum  of  $45,661  on  outlay  pay- 
ments, which  includes  new  buildings  and  trucks.  This  lacks  a  very 
little  of  being  sufficient  to  meet  the  installment  on  all  the  outstanding 
bonds  that  are  herewith  proposed. 

The  county  board  of  education  has  been  following  the  policy  of 
building  a  building  where  needed  whenever  the  necessary  funds  could 
be  provided.  It  would  take  a  long  period  of  years  before  the  entire 
building  program  of  the  county  could  be  completed  in  this  manner. 
The  children  who  are  attending  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County  today 
would  derive  benefit  from  a  building  program  that  was  made  possible 
immediately. 

Under  the  Public  School  Law  of  North  Carolina  the  only  possible 
way  for  a  board  of  education  to  make  out  a  definite  building  program, 
and  be  assured  that  this  building  program  can  be  carried  into  effect, 
is  by  the  method  of  a  bond  issue.  This  is  true  because  the  county 
board  of  commissioners  must  endorse  the  program  of  the  county  board 
of  education  each  year  before  it  can  be  carried  out.  The  county  board 
of  commissioners  of  Lincoln  County  has  been  cooperating  with  the 
countv  board  of  education  to  the  fullest  extent,  but  there  is  abso- 


County-wide  Plan  of  Organization  57 

lutely  no  assurance  that,  if  there  is  a  change  in  the  board  of  county 
commissioners,  the  new  board  will  help  carry  out  the  program  of  the 
county  board  of  education.  The  county  board  of  education  may  make 
out  a  building  program  covering  a  period  of  years  and  base  its  entire 
educational  policy  on  this  program,  only  to  have  it  broken  up  by  a 
board  of  county  commissioners  who  do  not  see  or  understand  the  needs 
of  the  schools  in  the  way  that  the  board  of  education  does. 

The  county  board  of  education  can  save  a  very  large  amount  of 
money  by  completing  its  building  program  as  soon  as  possible.  By 
building  a  number  of  buildings  simultaneously,  materials  can  be 
bought  in  large  quantities  at  much  lower  prices  than  would  be  possible 
if  only  one  building  was  built  each  year.  For  the  same  reason  there 
would  be  a  similar  saving  in  construction  work. 

It  is  strongly  advised  that  Lincoln  County  carry  out  the  building 
program  as  proposed  above. 


CHAPTER  X 

HOW   CAN  LINCOLN   COUNTY  MEET   ITS   OBLIGATION   OF 

PROVIDING  EDUCATIONAL  SUPPORT  FROM  ALL  THE 

TAXABLE  PROPERTY  IN  THE  COUNTY? 

It  has  been  shown  conclusively  in  Chapter  VI  that  it  is  impossible 
to  secure  equality  of  educational  opportunity  and  equality  of '  the 
burden  of  educational  support  in  Lincoln  County  unless  the  county  is 
selected  as  the  unit.  This  simply  means  that  Lincoln  County  will  ful- 
fill its  educational  obligation  to  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  county.  It 
means  that  every  boy  and  girl  in  the  county  will  have  equal  educa- 
tional opportunity,  and  that  every  taxpayer  will  pay  the  same  rate  of 
taxation  for  the  support  of  the  education  of  the  children. 

In  order  to  accomplish  this  end,  it  is  recommended  that  the  Board 
of  Education  petition  the  board  of  county  commissioners  to  call  an 
election  as  provided  in  Article  20  of  the  Public  School  Law  of  North 
Carolina.    In  brief,  this  article  provides : 

1.  That  a  special  tax  be  levied  on  all  the  taxable  property  in  the 
county. 

2.  That  this  special  tax  cannot  exceed  50  cents  on  the  $100  valuation 
of  property,  which  50  cents  must  include  all  the  bonded  indebtedness 
assumed  by  the  county  board  of  education. 

3.  That  the  present  special  taxes  may  not  be  levied,  but  that  this 
50  cent  special  tax  may  be  substituted  in  lieu  of  the  present  special 
tax. 

In  this  way  Lincoln  County  can  provide  that  the  education  of  every 
boy  and  girl  in  the  county  be  supported  by  all  the  taxable  property 
in  the  county. 


PART  III 
GENERAL  RECOMMENDATIONS  AND  COSTS 

CHAPTER  XI 

IMPORTANT  RECOMMENDATIONS 
TEAIVSPORTATION 

The  proposed  program  for  the  organization  of  the  schools  of  Lincoln 
County  calls  for  a  minimum  of  transportation.  Transportation  is 
a  very  vital  and  essential  part  of  the  organization  of  the  school  system 
It  is  only  by  this  means  in  many  cases  that  enough  pupils  can  be 
brought  together  at  one  center  to  assure  educational  efficiency  and 
economy  of  instruction.  It  is  impossible  to  give  here  the  exact  route 
with  the  number  of  children  on  the  route  for  all  the  proposed  lines 
in  Lincoln  County.  The  matter  has  been  carefully  studied,  however, 
and  ample  provision  has  been  made  in  the  proposed  scheme  for  all 
the  transportation  that  will  be  necessary. 

In  order  to  carry  out  the  program  here  proposed  it  will  be  necessary 
for  the  county  to  maintain  twenty-nine  or  thirty  transportation  routes. 
It  is  hard  to  say  the  exact  number  of  transportation  busses  that  will 
be  necessary,  because  experience  has  shown  that  the  number  of  pupils 
actually  applying  for  transportation  is  far  in  excess  of  those  that  were 
enrolled  in  all  of  the  schools  to  which  these  children  went  the  previous 
year.  It  frequently  happens  that  a  one-teacher  school  with  an  en- 
rollment of  eighteen  will  decide  to  transport  its  pupils  to  a  central 
school,  and  instead  of  having  to  transport  eighteen  pupils,  between 
twenty-five  and  thirty  will  apply  for  transportation.  This  is  usually 
because  the  central  school  is  able  to  teach  more  grades  and  offer  better 
advantages  than  the  school  that  the  children  last  attended.  Thirty 
transportation  busses  will  provide  ample  transportation  facilities  in 
Lincoln  County  for  a  period  of  three  or  four  years. 

It  is  strongly  recommended  that  an  assistant  superintendent  be 
elected  by  the  county  board  of  education  and  given  charge  of  the 
transportation  facilities  in  the  county.  It  will  be  the  duty  of  this 
official  to  supervise  the  transportation  in  the  entire  county,  to  plan 
the  transportation  routes  to  the  best  advantage  of  the  majority  of 
the  patrons,  and  to  see  that  provision  is  made  for  the  transportation 
of  all  the  pupils  in  the  county.  Such  a  person  will  be  practically  an 
essential  for  the  first  three  or  four  years  that  this  program  is  put  m. 

Not  only  will  this  man  plan  transportation  routes  and  make  pro- 
vision for  the  transportation  of  all  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  county, 
but  he  will  see  that  the  trucks  are  kept  in  proper  order  and  that  they 


60  LixcoLN  County  Schools 

are  properly  taken  care  of.    It  will  be  economy  for  the  board  of  educa- 
tion to  employ  such  a  man. 

GENERAL  RECOMMENDATIOIfS 

1.  The  county  hoard  of  education  should  employ  a  supervisor  for  the 
elementary  schools  of  Lincoln  County. 

It  is  impossible  for  the  county  superintendent,  with  the  large  num- 
ber of  administrative  duties  that  he  has,  to  properly  supervise  all  the 
schools  of  the  county.  It  is  very  important  that  a  trained,  well 
equipped  person  be  selected  to  supervise  the  elementary  schools.  Su- 
pervision will  result  in  more  efficient  instruction  and  better  educa- 
tional results.  Lincoln  County  especially  needs  a  supervisor  if  the 
elementary  schoolsj  are  to  be  reorganized  as  here  proposed.  Prac- 
tically each  school  will  have  pupils  from  other  schools,  and  it  will  be 
necessary  to  make  adjustments  in  gradation  and  classification  of 
pupils,  and  numerous  other  problems  that  will  present  themselves. 
The  small  sum  that  will  be.  necessary  to  employ  a  supervisor  would 
certainly  be  well  spent. 

2.  Assistant  superintendent  in  charge  of  transportation. 

This  official  was  discussed  under  the  head  of  Transportation,  but 
cannot  be  recommended  too  strongly. 

3.  There  are  .three  accredited  high  schools  proposed  for  the  county. 
The  county  hoard  of  education  should  make  every  effort  to  secure 
a  well  equipped,  ivell  trained,  well  experienced  principal  for  each 
of  these  three  high  schools. 

These  principals  should  be  given  the  supervision  and  care  of  the 
elementarj^  schools  surrounding  the  high  schools.  Each  principal 
should  have  supervision  over  those  elementary  schools  from  which 
pupils  come  into  his  high  school.  This  will  give  three  sectional  super- 
intendents, who  will  have  charge  and  supervision  of  the  schools  within 
their  section  of  the  County. 

4.  The  county  hoard  of  education  should  he  changed  as  soon  as  possihle 
from  a  memhership  of  three  to  a  membership  of  five,  ivith  the  under- 
standing that  two  of  the  five  members  that  constitute  the  hoard  of 
education  shotdd  he  selected  from  the  town  of  Lincolnton. 

This  cannot  be  done  until  the  next  meeting  of  the  General  Assembly, 
but  if  possible  this  organization  should  be  completed  at  that  time. 

5.  There  should  he  no  change  in  the  manner  of  selecting  the  commit- 
teemen or  trustees  for  the  schools  of  the  county. 

This  provision  can  be  carried  out  in  the  case  of  the  present  special 
chartered  districts  by  the  board  agreeing  to  appoint  those  chosen 
hy  the  voters  in  the  primaries. 

6.  The  special  charter  districts  of  Lincolnton  and  Love  Memorial' 
should  surrender  their  charters  as  provided  in  Section  157  of  the 
Puhlic  School  Law  of  North  Carolina. 


CHAPTER  XII 

WHAT  WILL  IT  COST  LINCOLN  COUNTY  TO  MEET  ITS 
OBLIGATIONS? 

COST 

In  planning'  the  reorganization  of  the  schools  of  Lincoln  County, 
the  cost  of  the  proposed  scheme  was  constantly  kept  in  mind.  If 
Lincohi  County  had  had  a  greater  valuation  of  taxable  property,  the 
recommendations  might  have  been  different.  The  whole  plan  is  pro- 
posed and  was  made  out  with  the  idea  of  the  greatest  educational 
efficiency  with  a  minimum  amount  of  taxation  and  financial  support. 
The  plan  proposed  is  in  no  way  a  cheap  plan.  Educational  efficiency 
has  not  been  sacrificed  for  the  sake  of  economy.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  plan  is  not  an  expensive  one,  and  the  taxpayers  of  the  county 
should  not  hesitate  to  adopt  the  proposed  plan  on  the  basis  of  the  cost. 

The  cost  of  the  proposed  plan  for  Lincoln  County  is  not  excessive 
in  comparison  with  the  other  counties  in  the  State.  When  the  pro- 
posed scheme  is  carried  out  in  full  the  per  capita  cost  of  education  in 
Lincoln  County  will  not  be  above  the  first  quartile  among  the  counties 
of  the  State ;  that  is,  there  will  certainly  be  one-fourth  of  the  counties 
of  the  State  having  a  higher  per  capita  cost  than  Lincoln  County. 
Nor  will  the  tax  rate  that  will  be  necessary  with  the  proposed  scheme 
be  higher  than  the  tax  rate  in  many  other  counties  in  North  Carolina. 

In  order  to  carry  out  the  proposals  and  recommendations  as  set 
forth  in  this  study,  it  will  be  necessary  to  increase  the  amount  that  is 
now  spent  for  education  in  the  county.  It  would  be  impossible  to  ma- 
terially raise  the  standard  of  the  teachers  in  the  county  without  ad- 
ditional cost.  It  would  be  impossible  to  provide  comfortable,  sanitary 
buildings  for  every  child  in  the  county  without  some  additional  cost ; 
and  it  would  be  impossible  to  extend  the  term  to  an  eight  months 
school  term  for  every  child  in  the  county  without  some  additional 
cost.  The  proposed  scheme  will  yield  the  best  educational  results 
for  the  minimum- expenditure. 

The  county  board  of  education  should  bear  in  mind  that  it  will  be 
impossible  to  put  this  plan  into  operation  in  one  year.  The  esti- 
mated expenditure  as  given  below  is  for  the  plan  in  full  operation.  It 
would  take  at  least  three  years  before  the  cost  of  the  system  would 
reach  this  point.  This  should  be  constantly  remembered  in  any  con- 
sideration for  the  cost  of  the  propose  plan. 

First.  The  State  Law  of  North  Carolina  makes  provision  for  main- 
taining the  public  schools  in  every  county  in  the  State  for  a  period  of 
six  months.  The  county  board  of  education  is  required  to  make  out 
a  budget  setting  forth  the  amount  that  will  be  required  to  maintain 
the  schools  of  the  county  for  a  period  of  six  months.     This  budget  is 


62  Lincoln  County  Schools 

presented  to  the  board  of  county  commissioners,  who  after  a  careful 
study  of  same  levy  a  sufficient  amount  of  taxes  to  maintain  the  schools 
of  the  county  for  a  period  of  six  months.  The  law  provides  that  in 
this  six  months  budget  shall  be  included  the  salaries  of  all  teachers, 
the  salary  of  the  county  superintendent,  all  the  expenses  for  operat- 
ing and  maintaining  the  schools,  transportation  of  pupils,  and  the 
necessary  money  for  school  buildings.  This  law  provides  sufficient 
funds  for  maintaining  the  schools  of  the  county  for  a  period  of  six 
months. 

Second.  In  order  to  extend  the  term  above  six  month  it  is  pro- 
posed that  Lincoln  County  vote  a  county-wide  special  tax  under 
Article  20  of  the  Public  School  Law  of  North  Carolina.  This  special 
tax  will  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  extending  the  school  term  to  a 
minimum  of  eight  months  and  providing  the  necessary  operating 
expenses  of  the  school  for  this  additional  two  months.  Article  20  re- 
quires that  the  special  tax  collected  under  this  article  shall  also  be 
used  to  pay  all  indebtedness,  bonded  or  otherwise,  of  any  district  or 
districts  that  may  be  assumed  by  the  county  board  of  education.  It 
has  been  advocated  above  that  the  county  board  assume  the  bonded 
indebtedness  for  the  buildings  of  the  school  district  of  Lincolnton,  and 
so  it  will  be  necessary  to  pay  the  installments  on  this  bonded  indebted- 
ness from  this  special  tax  fund. 

Third.  It  has  been  proposed  that  Lincoln  County  complete  its 
building  program  by  the  issuance  of  a  sufficient  amount  of  county 
bonds,  and  that  these  bonds  be  voted  under  Article  22  of  the  Public 
School  Law  of  North  Carolina.  The  funds  derived  under  the  tax 
voted  under  this  article  will  be  used  only  to  pay  the  interest  and  to 
create  a  sinking  fund  for  the  amount  of  the  bonds  authorized. 

Under  the  proposed  scheme  of  reorganization  for  the  schools  of  Lin- 
coln County,  it  will  be  necessary  to  raise  the  following  amounts  for 
each  of  the  three  funds  discussed  above. 

SIX  MONTHS  FUND  ' 
Salary  Fund* 

Salary  of  teachers,  six  months $93,000.00 

Salary  of  county  superintendent 3,500.00 

Assistant  county  superintendent 2,000.00 

Rural   supervisor,   salary 1,800.00 

Per  diem  of  county  board  of  education 300.00 

Superintendent  of  public  welfare 1,000.00 

Vocational  teachers,  12  months 6,000.00 

Total  salary  fund $105,800.00 

Receipts  From  All  Sources  Other  Than  County  Tax 

State  Equalizing  Fund  appropriation $15,000.00 

Rural  supervisor,  appropriation  from  State,  white 900.00 

Appropriations  from  Board  for  Vocational  Education..     3,000.00 

Total  $  18,900.00 

Salary  fund  to  be  raised  by  county $  86,900.00 

*  Includes  amount  necessary  for  all  schools,  both  white  and  colored 


CouKTY-wiDE  Plan  of  Organization  63 

Opekation  and  Equipment  Fund* 

Administrative  Expenses : 

Expenses  of  county  superintendent,  assistant  super- 
intendent, and  supervisor $  1,800.00 

Stationery,  fuel,  etc.,  for  county  superintendent's 

office 750.00 

Office  assistance  for  county  and  sectional  super- 
intendents        1,600.00 

All  other  expenses 1,000.00 

Expenses  of  Operation  and  Maintenance: 

Fuel     11,000.00 

Transportation  , 8,000.00 

Permanent  Equipment: 

New  buildings,  colored  schools 2,000.00 

Repairs 1,000.00 

Total  operation  and  equipment  fund $  32,150.00 

Receipts  Feom  All  Soutsces  Other  Than  County  Tax 

Poll  tax   $  3,750.00 

Fines,  forfeitures,  and  penalties 3,000.00 

Dog  taxes 1,500.00 


Total ." $     8,250.00 


Operation  and  equipment  fund  to  be  raised  by  county.  .  $  23,900.00 

*Iiicludes  amount  necessary  for  all  scliools,  both  ■^hite  and  colored. 

Fund  fob  the  Repayment  of  Loans 

Installment  and  interest  due  special  building 

fund  on  |147,000.00 $10,307.50 

Total  fund  for  the  repayment  of  loans $10,307.50 

Total  for  six  months  school  fund $110,800.00 


SPECIAL  TAX  FUND 

Teachers'  salaries,  two  months $32,000.00 

Transportation 5,000.00 

Installment  for  bonded  indebtedness  assumed 

for  Lincolnton  School  District 17,300.00 

Total  special  tax  fund $54,300.00 

Receipts  From  All  Sources  Other  Than  County  Tax 

State  appropriation  for  high  schools $  2,000.00 

Total   2,000.00 


Total   special   tax   fund    to   be   raised    by 

county     $  52,300.00 

SPECIAL  BOND  TAX 
Installment  and  interest  due  on  $300,000.00..  $25,950.00 


Total  special  bond  tax 25,950.00 


64 


Lincoln  County  Schools 


The  funds  necessary  under  the  proposed  plan  for  the  current  ex- 
pense of  the  schools  and  for  the  completion  of  the  building  program 
would  not  be  much  for  Lincoln  County  to  provide.  It  is  true  that 
the  amount  that  will  be  required  under  the  proposed  plan  is  more 
than  Lincoln  County  has  been  spending  on  its  schools.  It  is  also 
true  that  the  educational  advantages  that  will  be  offered  the  children 
in  Lincoln  County  far  exceed  anything  that  Lincoln  County  is  offer- 
ing today.  The  increase  in  the  amount  spent  on  education  in  Lincoln 
County  is  due  to  the  fact  that  hundreds  of  boys  and  girls  in  the  county 
who  do  not  have  the  advantage  of  a  standard  elementary  education, 
of  an  accredited  high  school  education,  nor  the  opportunity  of  attend- 
ing school  in  a  comfortable,  sanitary  building  under  the  present  or- 
ganization will  be  provided  with  all  of  these  advantages  under  the 
proposed  plan. 

The  per  pupil  expenditure  in  Lincoln  County  for  the  past  two  years 
has  been  as  follows  : 


Current 
Expenses 

Outlay 

Total 

Rural 

$        21.58 
41.33 

$        10. 18 
33.33 

$          31.76 

City 

74.66 

IN  1922-23 

Rural ._  '    _ 

i        22. 89 
45.26 

$        12.68 
117.45 

$          35.57 

City 

162.71 

The 

Per  Pupil  Expense 

OF  THE  Proposed  Plan 

Would  Be: 

All ...        

$        30. 00 

$        12.00 

$          42. 00 

This  would  mean  that  instead  of  spending  a  large  amount  and  giv- 
ing certain  advantages  to  a  few  pupils  within  the  county,  that  Lin- 
coln County  would  be  spending  a  just  and  equitable  amount  on  every 
boy  and  girl  within  the  county.  It  is  hard  to  conceive  that  any  one 
would  oppose  the  giving  of  standard  educational  advantages  to  all 
the  boys  and  girls  in  Lincoln  County  because  of  the  small  increase  in 
cost  that  this  would  mean. 

Lincoln  County  is  face  to  face  with  its  obligation  of  providing : 
A  standard  elementary  education ; 
An  accredited  high  school  education ; 
A  comfortable,  sanitary  building ; 

That  the  education  of  every  boy  and  girl  in  the  county  be 
supported  b}^  all  the  taxable  wealth  in  the  county. 
Lincoln  County  will  fulfill  its  obligation. 


FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


Form  No.  A-368.  Rev.  8/95 


.■"   A 


